Stitched Wishes
by RainbowKandiKorn22
Summary: Lloyd Garmadon has moved in with his family to an old condo building, containing eccentric neighbours, a strange falcon, and many secrets. With his parents overworked and inattentive, he finds himself drawn into a mysterious world where everything is what he wishes. But he soon discovers not all is as it seems. A Coraline AU, rated T for disturbing themes. Contains minor Cole/Jay.
1. Chapter 1

**I CAME BACK. AGAIN. So, thank you everyone for your patience after I promised this for like...nine months. Anyway, here is the first chapter of my Coraline AU, Stitched Wishes!**

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Thick, rain-heavy clouds drifted lazily across the sky. A large sign read "Emerald Heights Apartments" down the hill where a large, muted-green building stood. A moving van was parked at the front of the building, uniformed deliverymen carrying boxes through the front door where a man with greying hair waited.

The door to the backyard opened. A blond-haired teenaged boy stepped out, wearing a bright yellow raincoat and rain boots, looking up at the dark sky before walking down the steps. The yard was enormous, having a stone walkway leading down in a wide spiral to a small pond. Ivy grew along the stones, and little dandelions sprang up from between the cracks of the walkway. He peered over the edge of one of the stone walls, sighing when he saw the pond had no fish.

He had heard about the rumours of a hidden wishing well in the forest from one of his new neighbours, Mr. Walker. He warned him that if anyone uttered a wish around it, it would come true.

Apparently that was how Mr. Walker lost his eye, but it might have been a joke.

Nonetheless, the boy looked into the bushes, and grabbed a forked stick; he'd read that dowsing rods could detect water, and surely it would lead him to the so-called wishing well. He held it by the forked ends, and let it lead him out of the backyard, past a wrought-iron gate, and into the unknown.

He continued away from the pond, following a long path up into the rocky hills, the path on one side being the side of a cliff overlooking the condo building. A falling pebble from higher up the hill caught his attention. He turned his head to see a simple pile of rocks.

"Hello?" he called cautiously. "Who's there?"

His gut told him he wasn't alone, and when no one answered, he only grew more uneasy. He picked up the pebble that tumbled down, and threw it as hard as he could, aiming for the small area behind the rocks.

There was a flutter of dark wings, and an angry screech, and he jumped, stumbling back, nearly falling off the cliffside. Catching himself, he sprinted the rest of the way down the path in shock. He could still hear the beating of the bird's wings, and he desperately hoped it wasn't out to claw his eyes out for throwing a rock at it.

The cherry-tree lined path was a blur, until he made it to a small clearing, containing only a tree stump, and a circle of mushrooms, which he instinctively ran to the centre of as if it would protect him. His chest heaved for air as his heart thundered, looking around in fear.

A high-pitched screech sounded behind him along with a flutter of wings, and he screamed, whipping around. A falcon was perched on the stump, eyeing him cautiously. When it didn't look like it would fly at him, he groaned.

"You almost gave me a heart attack, you stupid bird!" he spat, still shaking a little from fear. He took a moment to compose himself, the falcon not budging. "I'm looking for an old well. You ever heard of anything like that around here?"

It still didn't move. He rolled his eyes. "I'm asking questions to a literal birdbrain." He held up his makeshift dowsing rod. "Come on, magic dowser…show me where the well is…"

A rustle sounded in the bushes on the hillside. He jumped, looking at the falcon, who hadn't moved a muscle since it landed. He gulped. _If that wasn't the falcon, then…_

Suddenly, a loud cry rang out through the air as someone leaped out of the bushes, wearing a bright red oni mask and wielding what looked like an actual sword. Again, the boy screamed, lifting the dowsing rod as if that would protect him from the assailant.

The tip of the sword swung to the ground at his feet. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the sword was merely a toy. He glared at the person who sprang at him, who removed the mask. It was another boy about his age, with spiky brown hair and a faded scar along his cheek. The boy rubbed his thumb against a spot of dirt on the mask.

"You're the new kid who just moved in, right? From the city? Aren't you a little old to be playing in the forest with sticks?" the brunet asked, smirking at him.

"I wasn't playing!" he snapped indignantly. "I was looking for the old wishing well with my dowsing rod, until you came along, you creep!"

The other boy laughed. "Dowsing rod? Like I said, you were _playing_. Nobody searches for water like that anymore." He sat down on the stump, right beside the falcon.

"And _you_ were stalking me," he retorted, turning his glare to the bird. "What, did your falcon send you some message about where I was?"

His accusation of the boy being a stalker went ignored. "He's not mine. He's Mr. Julien's… I think. But, he does like to peck at my window at night to show me the mice he eats for dinner. And Mr. Julien showed me how to take care of him once."

"Didn't know you could keep falcons as pets," he muttered, half to himself. "Also, how can you accuse me of playing here when you're swinging around a plastic sword?!" He stomped his foot as he spoke, his annoyance getting the best of him.

"First off, I'm just meeting you here. Second, if you really want to find the well, you should keep stomping your foot, because then you'll fall in it."

He looked down, and jumped away and out of the circle of mushrooms. The other boy got off of the tree stump, and cleared away some of the mud. Beneath the layer of dirt was a wooden door. The boy knocked on it, an echo resonating below.

"You've probably heard the old legend too, huh?" the brunet asked, picking up a large tree branch to prop the old door open to scatter the rest of the dirt. "That if you make a wish around it, it'll come true?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, they also say that it's so deep, that if you fall to the bottom and look up, you'll see a sky full of stars in the middle of the day."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Maybe," he said with a shrug. He looked down at the view of the condo building, its faded green exterior both blending in with the browns and greys of the scenery, and standing out against the muted dark green of the trees. "I'm surprised he let you move in. My grandpa owns Emerald Heights, and he never rents to anyone with kids."

"Why?"

The brunet suddenly looked worried, as if he had said too much. "I-I'm not supposed to say. Besides, he isn't even my grandpa, he's just a family friend, and I just call him that out of respect…" He shook his head to stop himself from rambling, and held his hand out. "I'm Kai. Kai Smith."

He took Kai's hand, shaking it. "Kai Smith? Sounds like one funky name combination if you ask me."

"First, you don't know everything about me. I could be biracial, you know." Then he laughed awkwardly. "But my actual name is Ashton. I tried going by Ash for a while, but I like Kai better." Kai smirked. "So what about you?"

"I'm Lloyd Garmadon."

Kai laughed. "Floyd Garmadon? And you say _my_ name is weird."

Lloyd glared at him, folding his arms across his chest. "I said _Lloyd_."

"It's a really uncommon name nowadays, but I hear a name like Floyd can lead to unusual expectations from other people." He shrugged as if that was something Lloyd should have known all along.

As Lloyd fumed at this odd boy's behaviour, he heard someone ringing a bell in the distance. "Ashton!" a voice called, belonging to what Lloyd believed was an old man. "Ashton!"

"I think someone's calling you," said Lloyd with a smirk. "Ashton."

With a somewhat guilty look, Kai looked around. "I-I didn't hear a thing."

Lloyd narrowed his eyes. "Oh, I definitely heard someone, _Asston_."

Kai straightened up, returning the blond's glare with one of his own. "Now you're just being rude for the sake of being rude." As the voice called again, he gulped. Looking from Lloyd to the falcon, then back to Lloyd, he smiled awkwardly, starting his way back towards the trail. "Well, it was nice to meet you, Floyd. But if you ever wanna do your water dowsing thing, or whatever it is again…I'd recommend wearing gloves next time."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because that stick you're holding is poison oak."

Lloyd gasped and threw the stick down, quickly wiping his hands off on his coat. With another laugh, Kai hurried down the trail in a quick jog, leaving him to fume on his own.

"My name is still _Lloyd_!" he yelled after him, despite knowing he wouldn't respond. He looked over at the falcon, who almost seemed to be amused by their meeting. After only a second more, it took flight, heading back down the hill to wherever it came from.

Sighing, Lloyd absentmindedly scratched at his hand, before he kneeled at the edge of the well. He saw a tiny hole in the well's door. He picked up a pebble, and dropped it through, curiously pressing his ear to the door. He waited for several seconds before he heard an echoing splash.

As if on cue, a raindrop splattered on Lloyd's nose. He stood up, taking one last look at the well, before he, too, headed back down the trail.

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 **Reviews are always appreciated and, as always, stay tuned!**


	2. Chapter 2

Lloyd watched the raindrops slide down the window as he organized the boxes of teas on the kitchen counter. "You know, Dad," he murmured, "I almost fell down a well yesterday." He looked over his shoulder at his father, who was busily typing away on his laptop. His father rarely gave his real name out to anyone, so he was known simply as Garmadon to anyone outside the family.

"…Oh, yeah?" he said, not looking up from the screen.

Frowning, Lloyd stacked another box in the earl grey pile. "I could've died. Or broken my leg."

"…That's nice." Garmadon still did not look up.

He tried not to huff at his father's lack of concern. "So…can I go outside today? I wanted to take a walk through that garden we have out back. Or maybe go into town and see what there is to look at." He looked eagerly at his father.

"No, Lloyd. It's raining outside. Rain leads to mud, and mud leads to messes." Once again, he didn't make any eye contact with Lloyd.

"But I thought you and Mom needed the rest of the teas for the shop," Lloyd insisted. "Maybe they delivered them to the wrong place? I can go and check, and maybe I can buy more teas that are better than all this boring stuff. I mean, you wanted to have a more 'interesting' and 'unique' tea shop, right?"

Garmadon sighed. "Yes, Lloyd. But then," he finally looked up, and pointed to his neck brace, "we had the accident."

"It wasn't my fault you hit a tree!"

"I didn't say it was." Garmadon went back to his laptop. "The orders for the teas will come in. They're just late, is all. And with those hospital bills, we're behind our payments for the shop's lease…"

Lloyd rolled his eyes, leaning back against the counter. "You and mom decided to open up a tea shop in the middle of nowhere, and you're supposed to open up in like, a week…but you don't even like tea."

"I'm only going to say this once: I don't have time for you right now, Lloyd." He peered up over his laptop, a steely glare in his eyes. "And you still have unpacking to do. _Lots_ of unpacking."

"Wow, what a dream come true. _Unpacking_." Lloyd made sure to put every ounce of sarcasm into his voice.

After a brief moment of cold silence, Garmadon reached under his chair. "I almost forgot to mention, a boy came around this morning and left this on the front porch for you." He held up something wrapped in newspaper, a little sticky note attached to it.

Raising an eyebrow, Lloyd walked over and took it, picking the sticky note off and reading it to himself.

 _Hey, Garmaboy, look what I found in my grandpa's trunk. Look familiar?_

 _-Kai_

Lloyd carefully unraveled the newspaper, his eyes widening when he saw what was inside. A little doll, with pale skin and blond hair, wearing a green jacket over a paler green shirt, tan-coloured pants, and black shoes stared back up at him with big, black button eyes. If he wasn't mistaken, Lloyd would say the doll looked almost exactly like he did yesterday when he met Kai.

"It's…a little me…?" he whispered, quietly so his father didn't hear. "That's just weird…" He crumpled up the newspaper and sticky note, tossing them in the trash.

"What's his name, anyway?" Garmadon asked. "Is he a friend?"

He scoffed. "No. His name's Kai." As he made his way out of the kitchen, still holding the doll, he grumbled, "Of course _he_ would give me a doll. He thinks I'm a baby."

Nonetheless, he carried it with him to his mother's study. She wasn't as secretive with her name as his father was; she was known as Misako. Her back faced Lloyd when he entered, her greying hair tied in a messy braid. The entire room smelled strongly of coffee. There was a decade-old computer on her desk; Garmadon tried to convince her to buy a new one, but she insisted it was reliable.

"Hey, Mom," Lloyd said, standing in the doorway. "How're the payments coming along?"

Misako didn't answer him, still tapping away on her keyboard. Lloyd sighed, trying to lean in a way where he could be seen in the reflection of her computer monitor. "Mom?"

After a long moment, she finally spoke in a tired tone, "Hello, Lloyd, and Lloyd…doll?" She turned around, her glasses low on the bridge of her nose as she stared at the doll in Lloyd's hands. She shrugged, turning back to her computer.

"So…is there anything you want me to buy in town?"

Misako paused for only a second, listening to the rain pattering against the window. "It's pouring out there, isn't it?"

He scoffed. "It's just a little rain."

"What did your father say?"

"'Don't even think about going outside, you dirty little boy'," Lloyd said, in as mocking of a voice as he could muster.

He saw Misako's smile in the reflection of her computer monitor. "Then I suppose you won't need to go to town."

Lloyd groaned, and held the doorknob as he leaned back. He pulled the door with him, making it creak. Smiling at the noise, he leaned forward, then back again, then forward again, the door squeaking with every movement. He could see Misako growing irritated, but continued to make the door creak, until she spun around in her chair.

"Lloyd, this house is almost one hundred and fifty years old," she said, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"So?"

"So explore it!" She picked up a notepad and a pencil, and pushed them into Lloyd's hands. "Count the doors and windows, then write it down! Draw out what you want your room to look like, or write down everything that's blue!" She sighed, the bags in her eyes looking heavier than ever. "You're fourteen years old now. You don't need me and your father to entertain you. Now please, just let me work, okay?"

As she spun back around, Lloyd sighed, tucking the doll under his arm as he made his way out of her study. He walked down the hallway towards the laundry room, until he nearly tripped over a bump in the rug. Frowning, he stomped on it, only for it to move behind him. Stepping on it again, it divided into two bumps. He gave up, and simply continued on his way.

The windows in the laundry room were tall and ornate, misted and leaking somewhat. He wiped away the condensation so he could peer outside. He looked down at the doll, and wiped away some more so the doll could "see" out. He didn't know why he did it; he just felt like it was necessary. The old car was parked outside in the driveway, several suitcases still strapped to the roof of it.

Lloyd counted the windows, and wrote the number down on the notepad. Then, he turned away and went upstairs to see what else he could find.

He found his way into his parents' room, and saw that even they still had quite a bit of unpacking to do, judging from all the boxes stacked around the room. He then made his way into their bathroom, which had rather unappealing mustard-yellow wallpaper.

Lloyd pulled back the shower curtain, but jumped back in alarm when he saw several earwigs crawling along the walls and floor of the tub. He immediately went to work in killing the bugs, crushing them under his hands and feet while being careful not to slip. Upon seeing the bug remains on his hands, he gagged, and tried to turn the tub faucet on to wash it off, only to get sprayed in the back of the head from the shower head.

His hair still somewhat damp after attempting to towel-dry it, he made his way back down the stairs. When he saw the bumps in the hallway rug, he jumped on them both, finally leaving none behind. The action, however, managed to creak open the door to a hall closet, right beside his mother's study.

Poking his head in, Lloyd saw it was a tiny, dimly-lit room, with nothing too significant other than a rusted boiler. Shrugging, he turned the light off, and saw that the lights in the entire house flickered. Suddenly, he heard his mother crying out in alarm, and he peeked into her room to see her clutching her computer monitor, the screen flickering until it turned off.

He bit his lip, and noticed a piece of paper that had been taped above the light switch. "DON'T PUSH!" was written in big letters. Lloyd turned the light back on, and quietly slipped out of the room, shutting the door behind him. He quickly made a note of the light under his notes about the bugs and the boiler, before tiptoeing away from the closet.

Lloyd walked into the parlour, the walls painted a soft baby blue colour. There were even more windows, and a small fireplace at the far side of the room. He looked over at the box on the coffee table, and saw it was full of old souvenirs that his parents collected over the years. He put the doll down on the table beside the box.

 _Well, Dad did say I need to do some unpacking,_ he thought, and began to pull out several snow globes and other trinkets, placing them on the fireplace mantel. One in particular caught his eye; a bronze teapot, which his family hadn't used once. Garmadon insisted it was because it was too fancy for tea, but Lloyd knew it was because his father wouldn't drink tea even if someone paid him.

Once he was done, he looked up at the painting above the fireplace. It depicted a little boy in a sailor suit, crying over a fallen ice cream. Lloyd raised an eyebrow, and spoke out loud as he wrote on his notepad.

"One boring blue boy, in a painfully boring painting…" He counted the windows. "… Four, incredibly boring windows, and no more doors…" When he reached down to pick the doll up off the table, his hands met only empty air.

Lloyd frowned, looking around. "Alright, Little Me…where are you hiding?" After a few moments of searching, he found the doll peeking out from behind the box the painting was packed in. He kneeled down, about to pick the doll up, when something behind the box caught his eye.

He pushed it out of the way, revealing a tiny door behind a layer of wallpaper, the outline of a keyhole able to be seen. Lloyd guessed if he walked on his hands and knees, he would probably be able to fit through it.

"Hey, Dad?" he called. "Where does this door lead?"

"I'm really, _really_ busy!" Garmadon called back.

"I think it's locked!" Lloyd waited for another response. When he got none, he lifted his head and yelled, "Pleeeeease?!"

He heard a groan from Garmadon, who soon stomped into the parlour, glaring at Lloyd, and then the door. He folded his arms across his chest as he stared at Lloyd. "Will you stop pestering me if I unlock it for you?"

Lloyd pouted, nodding as he whimpered like a puppy.

"Fine!" Garmadon left the room, leaving Lloyd to guess what could be behind the door. A secret passageway into the next home? A storage area for everything they wouldn't need? He couldn't help but smile in anticipation.

Garmadon soon returned, holding a black key with what looked like a button design at the one end. He cut the wallpaper surrounding the door, and Lloyd watched excitedly as Garmadon poked it through into the keyhole, turned the key, and opened the door to reveal…

"Bricks?!" Lloyd gasped, the entrance of the door showing nothing but a brick wall. "I don't get it!"

"They must have closed it off when they divided up the house," Garmadon said, pulling the key out of the hole and standing back up.

"Seriously?" Lloyd complained. "Then why's the door so small?"

Garmadon whipped around, impatience lighting his glare. "We made a deal! _Zip it_!" He marched out of the room without another word.

Lloyd bit his lip, staring at the wall of bricks. "You forgot to lock it." His father gave an aggravated yell, but he didn't come back. He merely heard the slam of the kitchen drawer as Garmadon returned to his work.

Sighing, Lloyd closed the little door, picking the doll back up as he hung his head. "So much for having something interesting in this house, huh?" he said to the doll. Its black button eyes just stared back up at him. He rolled his eyes. "Can't believe I'm even talking to this thing."

~o~o~o~o~

Misako sang a song off-key as she served Lloyd a heaping helping of her casserole, the only identifiable ingredients in it being black olives and onions. He gagged at the sight and smell of it, pushing his plate away.

"How come you never cook, Dad?" Lloyd asked, slouching in his seat. He had dragged an empty chair over for the doll earlier. He didn't know why he did it, but he would have felt bad if he just left it up in his room.

"We've been over this, Lloyd," Garmadon said with a sigh. "Your mother cooks, I clean, and _you_ stay out of the way." When Lloyd rolled his eyes, he continued, "I swear, as soon as we're done getting all of the problems with the tea shop sorted, I'll go food shopping." He pushed a bowl towards Lloyd. "Try some of the chard, it's good for you."

Misako scooped some of the leafy vegetable out, plopping it onto Lloyd's plate. He wrinkled his nose, lifting some up with his fork. "It looks more like slime to me."

"Well, you can either eat your 'slime'," Misako said, serving herself some chard and casserole, "or you can consider it bedtime. Your choice, honey."

Lloyd looked over at the doll, cradling its head with one hand. "Think they're trying to poison me?" he asked it. He made it nod 'yes', and picked it up. He stared up at the ceiling, leaning back in his chair, before picking the doll up and heading up to his room in a huff.

 _Can't pay attention to me, can't cook, can't be interested in something that's actually interesting… What I wouldn't do for better parents…_

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 **As always, reviews are greatly appreciated :3**

 **Stay tuned!**


	3. Chapter 3

Lloyd fell back onto his bed, wearing his favourite green pinstriped pyjamas, staring up at the cracked white ceiling, scratching his rash-covered hands. He hadn't had the energy to actually make his bed since they'd moved in, opting to use an old sleeping bag on his bed and a single pillow. He placed the doll on the chair beside his bed, sitting it so it looked comfortable.

He'd done his best to decorate his room. Old posters of his favourite bands were hung on the walls, his old toys sitting on the only bookshelf he'd ever had, along with a small collection of books that he'd read thousands of times. His lamp was the only source of light in his room, an ordinary pale green with a lampshade that wobbled around whenever he went to turn it off.

He looked over at his bedside table, a little photo in a simple frame on it. His friends from back home, Brad and Gene, smiled at him in the picture, the school marquee in the background rearranged to spell "We'll miss you!"

Sighing, he picked it up. "Don't forget about me, guys…okay?" Putting it back on his desk, he wiggled himself into his sleeping bag, and looked over at the doll. He smiled. "Goodnight…Little Me."

Lloyd turned his lamp off, rolled onto his side, and closed his eyes, letting the darkness enfold him as he slowly drifted off to sleep.

It had only been mere moments after he fell asleep that he heard a strange hissing noise. He thought it was just the rain pattering on the roof, until he realized it was almost right beside him.

Slowly, he sat up, and looked to the side. He jumped when he saw something in his doorway, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw it was something long, thin—

 _It's a snake,_ he thought, his eyes going wide, his body stiffening. _There's a snake in my room._

It turned its head to him, its tongue flitting out, before it turned and slithered out. Lloyd gulped. He knew it was probably a bad idea to follow it, but he felt a strong urge that if he didn't, his parents would find it in the morning.

Getting out of bed, he peeked out around his door, and saw the snake slipping down the stairs. Taking a quick breath in, he hurried down the spiral staircase as quickly and quietly as he could, so he wouldn't wake his parents. The snake didn't leave his sight once, not even when it darted around the corner and past the door into the parlour.

Lloyd made it into the room in time to see the snake squeezing past the little door that he had left just barely open. He rolled his eyes, and was about to go back upstairs, when he noticed it didn't come back out. Kneeling in front of the door, he pulled it open.

A pale blue light shone through, and his eyes widened as a long tunnel extended past the door, the snake slithering through to the end. A soft breeze blew past Lloyd's face. His heart raced, and he couldn't resist putting his hand on the tunnel's surface. It was somewhat soft, and his curiosity only grew. His lips forming a thin line, he began to crawl through.

He looked around at the tunnel, blue and purple light surrounding him, as if he were going through a portal of some kind. He couldn't even begin to describe how he felt, fear and excitement mingling in a pit in his stomach. The tunnel felt like it was wrapping around him, carrying him through despite knowing he was moving on his own. When he reached the end, he was met with another small door. He pushed it open, and crawled out.

"Huh…?" Lloyd ended up right back where he started, in the parlour.

He stepped out, slowly standing up and looking around. It looked exactly the same, but it felt…bigger. As if there was something more to the room, like it had more personality, more colour. He looked up, seeing the painting above the fireplace. The boy in the painting was no longer crying, and his ice cream was back on its cone as he licked it.

A warm scent wafted into the room from the kitchen, and Lloyd sniffed. "Mmm… Something smells good…" he murmured, letting his nose lead him towards the kitchen.

Someone was softly humming a tune, and when Lloyd opened the door, he saw it was his father, facing away from him as he stirred something in a bowl.

"Dad?" he asked. "What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

Suddenly, he turned around to face Lloyd, a wide smile on his face. Lloyd gasped. In place of his eyes were two large, black buttons.

"You're just in time for supper, son!" "Garmadon" said cheerfully. Lloyd narrowed his eyes, noticing that along with the buttons, his father almost looked more youthful, his hair back to a dark brown rather than grey, no wrinkles or age lines around his eyes.

"You…aren't my father," he said. "My father doesn't h-have…b-b—"

"Buh-buh-buttons?" he asked with a laugh, tapping one button eye with a finger. "Do you like them? I'm your Other Father, silly! Now, enough chit-chat, go and tell your Other Mother that supper's ready."

Lloyd didn't move from his spot, even as this person claiming to be his "Other Father" opened up the oven to take out an enormous chicken. He looked at Lloyd. "Well, go on!" In a softer voice, he added, "She's in her study."

Raising an eyebrow, Lloyd didn't take his eyes off the Other Garmadon as he left the kitchen, making his way to where he knew his mother's study was.

He heard the whirring of some kind of machine, and the sound of his mother humming. He opened the door, seeing her back facing him as well.

"Mom?"

She spun around in her chair, smiling. She, too, had big black buttons for eyes. "Hello, Lloyd!" she greeted. Like his Other Father, she looked more youthful as well, her braided hair much tidier and a much richer brown. "Would you like to hear the poem I've just finished writing?"

Lloyd huffed. "My mom can't write poems."

"I don't need to!" Suddenly, large white gloves attached to rods and pulleys popped out from the contraption behind her, slipping onto her hands. "My poems write _me_!" They tugged her towards her desk, grabbing a feather quill from an inkwell, and she spoke aloud as she continued to write.

" _A son like you comes but once in a century,_

 _sent here to grace us with the love_

 _locked away in your heart of gold._

 _You're sweeter than honey,_

 _precious as a gem,_

 _like a doll in a china shop._

 _Dancing, singing, playing games;_

 _everything you've missed as you've grown_

 _is waiting for you here._

 _Our arms will be your castle walls,_

 _our hearts open doors_

 _waiting for you to call_."

His Other Mother laughed. "I've only just started, but I think I'm getting the hang of it!"

Lloyd smiled awkwardly. The poem was almost too flattering, and he found himself blushing. "It's…great! Um, but he just said to tell you that the food's ready."

She hummed happily. "Who's starving? Raise your hand!" She stuck her left hand up, the right hand flying up as well thanks to the contraption. Lloyd laughed, still somewhat unnerved by her button eyes, but willing to overlook it. She seemed friendly enough, much like his Other Father.

They made their way to the dinner table, which was much more elegantly decorated than the plain fold-out table he was used to. It was a long, mahogany dining table with a lace cloth spread along it, a bowl of fruit in the centre that looked like it had come right out of a painting. Surrounding it were dishes of corn on the cob, peas, mashed potatoes, and bread rolls, two candelabras on either side of the fruit bowl. The chairs were tall-backed and ornate, like the kind he would see in movies starring exceedingly wealthy people.

His Other Mother pulled out his chair for him, and he looked at her gratefully before sitting down. His Other Father placed the chicken down on the table near Lloyd. Once he sat down, they both made prayer hands, prompting Lloyd to quickly do the same.

"We give our thanks, and ask to bless," his Other Father began, "our mother's golden chicken breast!"

He laughed as his Other Mother scoffed, and Lloyd smiled, taking a leg off the chicken. His Other Mother also helped herself, while his Other Father's plate remained bare. Perhaps he just wanted Lloyd to have as much as he wanted.

He took a big bite, moaning in delight at the flavour filling his mouth. "This chicken's delicious!" he exclaimed, his mouth still full. He took the spoons sticking out of the other bowls, serving himself large helpings of peas and potatoes.

"You must be so hungry, aren't you, Lloyd?" the Other Father asked.

Lloyd nodded as he began to quickly devour his food. "D'you have any gravy?"

"Well, here comes the gravy train!" he said, chuckling as a train blew its whistle. It was only now that Lloyd noticed the figure-eight train track on the table, the train quickly chugging its way over to his plate. It carried a little gravy boat on one of its cars, slowing down beside his potatoes to pour gravy on top.

As Lloyd ate, he couldn't believe that he had been onto something the entire time; his father could cook a million times better than his mother could. If he'd started sooner, Lloyd would have been eating like a king months ago.

He was almost disappointed when his fork touched his bare plate.

"Would you like another roll?" his Other Father asked, gesturing to the bowls of food. "Sweet peas? Corn on the cob?" The dishes rotated as he spoke, as if connected directly to his voice.

Lloyd shook his head. "But I'm really thirsty."

"Of course! Any requests?"

The chandelier overhead lowered, twirling elegantly as it neared. Lloyd thought hard for as unique of a flavour as he could.

"How about…a blueberry-raspberry milkshake?" The rotating slowed at one dispenser and Lloyd held his glass up to let the chandelier fill it. He drank the whole glass happily as it rose back up and his Other Father took his empty plate away.

Once he was done, he was presented with dessert: a large cake with orange-yellow frosting. Candles popped up from frosting flowers, and the words "Welcome Home!" wrote themselves in bright red icing.

Lloyd raised an eyebrow. "Home?"

His Other Father smiled. "We've been waiting for you, Lloyd."

"For…me?"

"Of course!" his Other Mother said, coming over to stand next to the Other Father, squeezing his hand. "It just wasn't the same without you!"

Lloyd shifted a little uneasily in his chair. "I didn't know I had an Other Father."

"Well, sure you do!" said his Other Father. "Everyone does."

"…Really?"

"Yup! And I was thinking once you have some cake, we could play a game." His Other Father's button eyes seemed to gleam excitedly, his fingers tapping on the table.

Lloyd raised an eyebrow. "Like…hide and seek?"

He grinned. "Perfect! Hide and seek…in the rain!"

"What rain?" He jumped when his question was quickly answered, a loud crack of thunder sounding outside, lighting flashing brightly through the window. "Oh. That rain. But, uh…what about mud? Won't it get the house dirty?"

"We _love_ mud here!" his Other Mother exclaimed. "It's so versatile! Mud facials, mud baths…"

"Mud pies!" added the Other Father. "And it's perfect for poison oak rashes."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow, his Other Father taking his hand, examining the rash. "H-how did you know about…" He stopped himself, and smiled shakily. "I-I'd love to stay and play, but…I should get home to my other father."

"But _I'm_ your Other Father, silly!"

He withdrew his hand, getting out of his chair. "I meant, my _other_ other father. Um… Dad number one?" He backed up, jumping a little when he saw his Other Mother standing right behind him, smiling at him. "I should really get to bed."

"Of course, son," his Other Father said with a nod. "It's all made up for you."

"But—"

His Other Mother took his hand. "Come on, sleepyhead."

They led him up the stairs, and he tried to fight away the uneasy feeling in his gut, passing it off as simply feeling full from actually eating good food for once. Once they made it to his bedroom, his Other Father pushed the door open, and Lloyd gasped.

It was exactly what he'd wanted his new room to look like. The walls were painted a dazzling shade of lime green, and a fire was lit in the fireplace. His lamp had a rotating lampshade with star and moon shapes for the light to shine through. Rather than a ratty old sleeping bag on his mattress, his bed had a comfy-looking gold and white quilt, with pillows that looked like clouds pulled right out of the sky. His old toys were alive, and smiled down at him with beady eyes.

One of his oldest childhood toys, a stuffed puppy, pranced around his feet with all the energy of a real dog. Smiling, he picked it up, and it licked his face, yapping at him excitedly.

"Hey, Lloyd!"

"You haven't forgotten us already, have you?"

He put the stuffed puppy down and looked in the direction of the voices — his nightstand — and gasped when he saw Brad and Gene waving from the photo frame.

"Brad! Gene!" He ran over and flopped onto his bed, picking the picture up. "How've you guys been?! I can't wait until you guys can visit. You're both coming, right?"

"Well, duh!" Gene laughed.

"You really think we'd miss the chance to see you again?" Brad added, smiling at him.

Beaming, Lloyd suddenly yawned, his sleepiness finally getting to him. He put the picture back on his nightstand, and felt his Other Father's hand gently take his arm. He applied some mud to his poison oak rash, doing the same on his other arm. "Oh yeah… The mud…"

Yawning again, Lloyd got under his quilt, sighing at how warm and comfy it was, resting his head on his pillow as his eyes slowly closed.

Before sleep overtook him, he could hear his Other parents softly whisper in unison, "See you soon…"

* * *

 **Turns out poetry is a lot harder to write than I thought it would be.**

 **Anyways, stay tuned! And if this is the last update before Christmas, then Happy Holidays!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A bit of a shorter chapter this week, but it's in preparation for what is to come~**

* * *

Morning light shone in Lloyd's face, and he softly groaned as he woke up. Rubbing his eyes, he sat up, looking around. It was no longer the fantastical bedroom he had in the other world, but rather his plain, ordinary, real room. His toys were as lifeless as they'd always been, even his stuffed puppy lying on its side on the floor. He sighed in frustration.

 _Wait…the door doesn't lead to nothing anymore!_ he thought suddenly, and bolted out of bed. He charged down the spiral staircase, making a beeline for the parlour.

He skidded to a halt on his knees in front of the door, swinging it open. His face fell as he saw that it was still closed off.

Even at breakfast, however, Lloyd couldn't get the beautiful world out of his head, and couldn't stop himself from talking about it to his parents, even as they scrambled about trying to get to work.

"Dad you should've seen it," he rambled, his cereal still untouched. "You were cooking this huge dinner, and everything felt so real, even the food! For once, it was actually delicious!"

Garmadon didn't look at him as he sorted through a pile of manilla folders. "Buttons for eyes, hmm? Sounds a little out of the ordinary, if you ask me." He placed a tiny pill in front of Lloyd. "It was only a dream, Lloyd. Now, eat your cereal, and take your multivitamin."

Lloyd rolled his eyes, and looked at his mother, who was pouring herself a cup of coffee. "And you, mom! You were writing poetry! It wasn't any of this tea junk, it was actually kinda cool!"

Laughing, Misako tucked a folder under her arm, holding her coffee in one hand. "Well, I did write a bit of poetry in high school, but it was hardly anything special. Just a one time occasion."

"Just like how paying this building permit is a one time occasion," Garmadon snapped. "Please, dear, don't encourage him with this…dream world business. We have lots of work to do today."

Misako shook her head, kissing Garmadon's cheek. "Calm down, love. We'll be done before we know it." She smiled at Lloyd, and headed towards her study.

Garmadon sighed, softly smiling; Lloyd knew he couldn't stay mad at her for longer than a moment. "In the meantime, Lloyd, how about you go downstairs and tell your stories? I'm sure those 'performers' would love to hear them."

He scoffed. "Mr. Walker and Mr. Belmonte? But you said they were a bunch of weirdoes!"

"Exactly."

~o~o~o~o~

Once Lloyd had a shower and got dressed for the day, he stepped outside, the smell of rain clinging to the air. His foot hit a somewhat large package draped in a cloth on the welcome mat. He raised an eyebrow, looking at the note taped to the cloth.

"Julien," he muttered to himself, picking the package up. He lifted the cloth, and nearly dropped the package. It was actually a cage, housing several fat mice. They squealed in fright as they saw him, scurrying about their tiny space. Gulping, he covered the cage back up.

He walked down the front steps, looking around. He saw a sign hanging on the wall that read "JULIEN UP HERE", an arrow pointing to a staircase on the side of the building leading to the apartment up top. Sighing, Lloyd carried the cage up the stairs.

Once he reached the door, he used his foot to knock on the door. "Hello?" he called. "It's Lloyd Garmadon, from downstairs! I think our mail got mixed up? Do you want me to leave it outside, or…?"

No response. However, the door suddenly creaked open, and Lloyd couldn't help but nudge it open a little more. He peeked in. It was dark and cramped, barely seeming fit for mice, let alone a person.

"Pardon me."

Lloyd jumped, whirling around to see a tall, pale-skinned man with military-buzzcut blond hair staring at him. It wasn't just his seemingly-unblinking blue eyes that unnerved Lloyd the most. Rather, it was the enormous white python draped around his neck, and a smaller orange snake wreathed around his left arm that scared him the most.

He continued to stare at Lloyd even as he reached behind him to pull the door shut. "My soon-to-be-famous snake charming show is not quite ready."

"S-sorry, I, uh…" he stammered, trying not to stare at the snakes. "I-I just wanted to bring this to you." He smiled shakily, holding up the cage of mice.

The man gave a wide smile, and he reached out to take the cage from Lloyd. The two snakes on his shoulders and arm immediately took notice, their tongues flitting out at it.

"Ah, yes, you two already know what it is, don't you?" he said with a soft chuckle.

"H-huh?"

"It's my delivery of mice. You're clever, using this mix-up to try and sneak a peek at my performers."

"Your…performers?"

He laughed, but it seemed hardly genuine. "My snakes, of course!"

"Oh… Um, I'm Lloyd Garmadon?" He stuck his hand out for the man to shake it. He did, but his grip felt feather-light. The snake on his arm flicked its tongue at Lloyd hand, and he froze. When the man nodded, Lloyd gingerly reached out and touched the snake's back. Surprisingly, it didn't recoil or try to bite him.

"And my name is Zane Julien. But, since we are neighbours, you may simply call me Zane." He took the cloth off the cage, smiling as the mice scurried around and squeaked loudly.

"You see, Floyd, although my flute-playing is almost perfect at this point, my snakes are still not quite tempted to dance for me. Therefore, I'll just have to get them larger mice, to tempt them. And once they are tempted, my show will at last be perfect!"

He turned away, opening his door. Zane looked back at him with a large smile. "It was wonderful to meet you, Floyd. Perhaps you'll be the VIP to the show!" He tossed something large in Lloyd's direction, and he scrambled to catch it. "Have an artichoke! It will help make you strong, Floyd." With that, he went inside and shut his door behind him.

Lloyd rolled his eyes. "It's still _Lloyd_." He tossed the artichoke over his shoulder in frustration. Couldn't this weird neighbour give him a vegetable he actually liked, like a beet?

He went back down the stairs, and saw a pair of garden shears on the windowsill. Looking over at the car — his parents' suitcases still strapped to the roof of it in rope — he decided to do them a favour and cut them lose. He whistled to himself as he headed down the steps again. Before he could reach the car, Zane called out to him loudly.

"Floyd! Wait!" He sprinted down the steps, much faster than Lloyd would have thought possible, and came to an abrupt halt right in front of him. "The snakes have told me to give you a message!"

Lloyd raised an eyebrow. "Your snakes _talk_ to you?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't they?" Shaking his head, Zane crouched slightly so he was eye-level with Lloyd, his voice deadly serious as it lowered to a whisper. "They said… 'don't go through the little door in the big room'." Lloyd gasped, his eyes widening. "Do you know of such a thing?"

"The…door behind the wallpaper? But it's all bricked up!"

Zane sighed, straightening up and shrugging. "I apologize, then. The snakes, sometimes, do not understand much. They're a little…" he twirled his fingers at the side of his head, "mixed up, on occasion. They even got your name wrong! They called you 'Lloyd' rather than 'Floyd'! Your name isn't Lloyd at all!" As he turned away and went back up the stairs, Lloyd could just barely hear him mutter, "Perhaps I've been working them too hard…"

Lloyd stared after him, wondering how such an odd man wound up living in the Emerald Heights in the first place.

He headed over to the car, snipping the rope binding the suitcases to the top of the car and taking them down. There were three in total — one for his father, one for his mother, and one very small suitcase for Lloyd. He carried them to the doorstep, huffing the entire way there. He dropped them unceremoniously in front of the door.

Lloyd picked up the smallest suitcase, and opened it up. All that was in it was a fedora, with a green band around it. He smiled, putting it on his head. It was a going-away present from Brad and Gene. Lloyd promised to wear it as soon as he got to his new home.

 _If I wear this when I see Mr. Walker and Mr. Belmonte, they'll be sure to remember me, and especially what my name is!_ Grinning to himself, he made his way to the staircase leading down to their door.

* * *

 **By the way, I love reviews. Please keep leaving them :3**

 **Stay tuned!**


	5. Chapter 5

Lloyd made his way down the stone steps to a bright blue door. Black curtains were hung along the sides of the door's small window. He looked down at the welcome mat. "NO WHISTLING IN THE HOUSE" was written. He smirked, and knocked on the door three times. No one answered right away. Frowning, he peered in.

He jumped back in surprise as an enormous black dog leapt up at the window, barking as its gigantic paws scrabbled against the door.

A thin hand pushed the dog gently out of the way as the door opened. "Quiet, Bruiser! No jumping!" A short, skinny, middle-aged man with grey-ginger hair and an eyepatch stepped in front of the dog. "Oh, Floyd! It's so good to see you! Come in, come in. We were just playing cards."

Smiling, Lloyd stepped in, hanging his raincoat on the coatrack. "It's still Lloyd, Mr. Walker."

"I already told you, you don't have to be so formal! Just call me Jay."

The dog, Bruiser, barked at Lloyd, sniffing his hands and legs as he walked in. Lloyd wasn't particularly used to large dogs, and smiled awkwardly as he patted his head. "Um…good boy…"

Jay smiled warmly. "Don't worry, Bruiser won't bite." He turned to the beaded curtain entrance. "Cole! Put the kettle on!" he called, winking back at Lloyd as he pushed through the curtain. Lloyd looked around, seeing several colourful posters hung on the walls, the names of various nightclubs on them. He raised an eyebrow, and followed Jay in.

Fairy lights were strung along the walls and ceiling, more posters lining the walls in black and neon colours. Tango music played from a small CD player in the corner, Jay swaying his hips to the beat.

A large, black-haired man with an enormous gut peered out from the kitchen, squinting his eyes. "Jay? I think you're being followed!"

Jay rolled his eyes as Lloyd gave a shy wave. "It's Floyd, Cole! The new neighbour from upstairs? He came to visit. Now, make him some nice peppermint tea!"

Lloyd was about to say he wasn't a big fan of tea, only for Cole to reply, "I think he'd much prefer earl grey."

"No. _Peppermint_."

Cole gave a wide smile. "Earl grey it is, then!"

Groaning, Jay shook his head, and gestured to the couch for Lloyd to sit down. When Lloyd did, he was surprised to hear a soft rumbling near his ear. He turned his head and gasped as he saw a large, black shadow next to his head. Pointed ears perked up at him, and the fluffy black cat purred loudly as it rubbed against his head.

"Ugh, Cole! Geode's getting all his fur on Floyd!" Jay complained, brushing little black hairs off Lloyd's shoulder gently. "He'll be going home all hairy now."

Cole glared back at Jay from the kitchen, pouring hot water into a teacup. "Well, Bruiser got on the couch this morning and left his paw prints on it, so I'd say it's a fair trade. Besides, Floyd isn't allergic! And Geode's just showing his affection." He cooed out the last sentence, like he was talking to a baby.

Lloyd chuckled, and looked over at the far corner. Several mannequins stood by the wall, sparkling outfits glimmering in the dim lights. He raised an eyebrow. _Who could possibly wear something like that?_ he wondered. _They look so uncomfortable!_

"I see you've noticed some of our most famous costumes," Jay said, smiling proudly, slightly leaning on Bruiser as the dog sat obediently at his side. "Cole and I have performed all over the country, for crowds of thousands! That one, we wore at our first show, and this one in 1972, and this one…"

He let Jay's excited voice trail off as Cole came into the room, placing a tray in front of Lloyd containing his teacup, and a dish of candy.

"Go on, indulge yourself," Cole said with a smile. "It's hand-pulled taffy from overseas."

Lloyd nodded his thanks, picking a little blue candy from the dish. However, his fingers got stuck, his other hand as well when he tried to pull free. Grunting, he tried to use his foot to pull his hands out, only for the entire dish to go flying up at the ceiling. He gulped, and straightened up.

"I'll read them for you, if you'd like."

He looked up, seeing Jay put on a little purple hat with an eyeball in the middle, and a feather sticking out on top. "Huh?"

"Your tea leaves of course!" said Jay, as though it was obvious. "They'll tell me your future."

Lloyd shrugged, and sipped his tea. Jay, however, lightly criticized the way he drank it. "That's it, drink up. Oh, not all of it, not all of it! There we go, now hand it over." Lloyd gave his cup to Jay, watching as he swished it around. He waited patiently.

Suddenly, Jay's eye widened, and he gasped. "Oh, Floyd… Floyd, Floyd, Floyd." He looked up at him, his eye wide in fear. "You're in terrible danger!"

Lloyd's brow furrowed as he stared in disbelief. "What?"

"Oh, give me that cup, Jay!" Cole snapped, taking the hat off his head. "You're scaring him! Besides, your eyes are going."

" _My_ eyes? You're blind as a bat!" Jay grabbed the hat back. Cole took that as a chance to snatch the teacup out of Jay's hands.

"Not to worry, kiddo," he assured, squinting into the cup. "It's good news! There's a tall, handsome beast in your future." He winked at Lloyd with that comment.

"A _what_?"

"Oh, Cole, really? You're holding it wrong." Jay took the cup back, turning it and holding it up to Cole's face as he kneeled slightly. "See? Danger!"

Lloyd would have stood up, but Geode had found his way into his lap, curling up. "What do you see?" he asked.

"I see a very peculiar hand…" Jay mused.

Cole turned the cup another way. "I see a giraffe."

Jay glared at him. "Well, giraffes don't just fall out of the sky, Cole!" At that, the candy dish fell from the ceiling, shattering onto the floor and startling them. Geode leapt out of Lloyd's lap, his fur on end, while Bruiser barked loudly, his tail between his legs.

Lloyd cleared his throat. "So…what should I do?"

"Never wear blue in your dressing room," Jay said with a smug grin at Cole.

Cole nudged him out of the way. "Buy a very tall stepladder."

Jay pushed as best as he could against Cole to get back to where he was standing. "And be very, very careful!" With that, Cole knocked Jay over with his stomach, smiling as he brushed his hair out of his eyes. Jay grumbled as he stood back up, his hair disheveled. "Now, Floyd, was there something you needed to tell us?"

Looking from Jay to Cole, then to Jay again, Lloyd sighed, and shook his head. They would probably insist there was some deeper meaning to his dream, just like with the tea leaves. "I guess not. Thanks for the tea, though." He got up from the couch, Geode taking his seat.

"Goodbye, Floyd!" Jay called.

"Careful, it might be foggy outside!" Cole added.

He pushed back through the beaded curtain, taking his raincoat and quietly closing the door behind him. _I guess the hat didn't help them remember my name after all,_ he thought sadly, walking back up the stairs.

Cole was right; fog covered the yard like a thick blanket, and Lloyd could hardly see where he was walking. The air still smelled like rain, the soil beneath his feet squelching.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps behind him. He turned his head, seeing no one. He did, however, see a periscope through his peripheral vision. Rolling his eyes, Lloyd walked forward a little, pretending like he didn't see anything. Once he heard the footsteps again, he whipped around and grabbed the periscope, yanking it upward. Kai was there, and Lloyd punched him in the arm hard.

"Ow!" Kai protested. "What was that for?!"

Lloyd ignored his question. "Great! It's the village stalker!"

Kai rubbed his arm, frowning. "I-I wasn't stalking you!" He then grinned, holding up a pair of salad tongs. "We're hunting for banana slugs."

"Who's 'we'?"

The front of his jacket suddenly squirmed, and the falcon's head popped out, looking around. It flew out, then perched itself on Kai's shoulder. Lloyd had no idea how Kai could withstand the bird's talons digging into his jacket, but he couldn't help but crack a joke.

"Ha! That thing's not a falcon! It's a chicken." It almost seemed to glare at him, its feathers ruffling.

"Don't judge him!" Kai said. "He just doesn't like getting his feathers all wet."

Lloyd rolled his eyes. "Chicken…" At that, the falcon flew off, landing on the roof outside Lloyd's bedroom window. He smirked, and asked as casually as possible, "So…about that doll. Did you make it look like me?"

Kai had disappeared under the layer of fog, searching, and popped his head up momentarily. "Nope, I found it that way," he answered distractedly. "It's older than my grandpa, maybe even as old as the Emerald Heights."

He scoffed. "Come on, seriously? It was wearing the exact same outfit as I was the day we met. A green jacket, and my exact same pants?"

"How was I supposed to know that's what you were wearing?" Then, Kai gasped, and sprang back up, a bright yellow slug clutched in the tongs. "Look, I'm gonna call him Slugzilla!"

Lloyd rolled his eyes, shoving the tongs away. "You're just like them."

"Like who?"

"My parents! They don't listen to me, either."

"Uh-huh," Kai murmured, handing Lloyd a camera. "Do you mind?"

Groaning, Lloyd took the camera and snapped several photos of Kai goofing around with Slugzilla. Pretending to eat it, pretending to pull it out of his nose, treating it like a giant monster, and wearing it like a moustache. Lloyd couldn't help but laugh, for once not minding being in Kai's company.

Kai threw the slug back into the fog, graciously taking the camera back from Lloyd, stuffing it under his jacket. He smiled. "It's nice to finally have some company. And y'know…I've never actually been inside Emerald Heights before."

"Seriously?"

"Grandpa would kill me! He thinks it's dangerous…or cursed, or something."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued. "Dangerous?"

Kai bit his lip, and he looked away for a moment. "I…had a little sister."

"You did?" Lloyd asked, his expression softening. "What was she like?"

He smiled. "Her name was Nya. She was two years younger than me." His eyes stared away into a distant memory. "She was always lots of fun. We used to play Samurai And Ninja in the forest in our backyard. She'd be the samurai, and I'd be the ninja. It was like hide and seek. She was always the best at it."

Lloyd shifted a little before he slowly asked his next question. "What happened to her?"

Kai's eyes drifted down sadly. "About a year ago, she came to visit grandpa Wu, and…he said she disappeared. That she was stolen."

"Stolen?" Lloyd's eyes went wide. "Do you really think that's what happened?"

"I'd prefer anything else…" Kai said, his voice quiet. Suddenly Lloyd didn't feel so smug about teasing him so much. He reached out, patting his shoulder.

"Maybe she just ran away…?" he suggested. "Was she upset or something…?"

His grandfather's voice soon rang out into the still air. "Ashton! Ashton!"

Kai shook his head, walking past Lloyd without looking at him. "Look, I gotta go."

"Wait, no, tell me more first!" Lloyd yelled, watching as Kai broke into a quick jog, the fog swallowing him up. He sighed, looking up at the falcon perched on the roof. It stared back at him, and soundlessly flew off.

 _Sure wish Kai could've stayed longer, if only to tell me more about what happened,_ he thought with a sigh.

* * *

 **By the way, Cole and Jay are married.**

 **Stay tuned!**


	6. Chapter 6

Lloyd kept his bedroom door open just a crack, carefully placing a large egg beside it. It was the last egg they had, but considering how little his parents actually cooked — they had ham and cheese wraps for dinner that night — they probably wouldn't miss it. He planned to use the egg to lure one of the snakes he saw last night to the door, just to see if they were, in fact, real.

He crawled into bed, keeping his stuffed puppy beside him. Turning his lamp off, he whispered a good night to the doll — which still sat upon his chair — before turning over and closing his eyes. His breathing slowed as he drifted off into a light sleep.

Soon enough, he heard a quiet hiss, and he carefully rolled over to see another snake. He fought back his fear this time, grinning to himself as the snake took the egg into its mouth, and slithered away.

He quickly got to his feet, hurrying down the stairs after the snake as it followed the same path to the parlour, and to the little door. It squeezed through the crack, and Lloyd immediately swung the door open.

There weren't any bricks this time, the same long, blue tunnel extending far towards the door at the other end. Without hesitation, a smile on his face, Lloyd began to crawl through.

He allowed his hands and knees to carry him all the way to the other end, and he pushed the door open eagerly.

Lloyd was back in the other parlour room, which still looked more spacious and welcoming than the one in the real world. He made his way to the kitchen, where he could hear his Other Father humming another tune.

The smell of eggs and the sound of sizzling bacon filled the kitchen, a large bowl of fruit shimmering on the little table. Lloyd tried not to jump as his Other Father turned around to smile at him, his button eyes shining.

"Welcome back, son," he greeted, looking even better than he did last night; his hair had more volume, and even looked darker.

"H-hi," Lloyd said shyly, looking at the pan on the stove.

Other Garmadon cracked an egg into it. "It was so nice of you to send this Grade-A egg our way, Lloyd. It'll certainly taste delicious."

"Oh, right!" Lloyd laughed. Then, he murmured to himself, "The snake bait…"

"Now, could you go and fetch your mother?" he asked, beaming. "If she doesn't eat, I'm afraid she'll get paper-thin!"

He raised an eyebrow. "You mean my Other Mother, right?"

"Your _better_ mother, son," he corrected. "She's probably out in the garden."

Lloyd snorted. "My parents don't do any kind of gardening."

Other Garmadon hushed him, picking a bright red strawberry out of the bowl beside him and popping it into Lloyd's mouth. As Lloyd chewed it, he couldn't help but hum in delight at the sweet taste.

"Go on! Don't be shy!" his Other Father urged with a wide smile. Lloyd shrugged, and headed to the back door.

Once he stepped outside, he couldn't help but notice how dark it was. The sky was black and filled with stars, the stone path ahead of him still dull and grey. He walked to the stone arch where he suspected the garden was, pushing open the iron gates, making a loud, echoing creak.

The second Lloyd passed through the gate and under the arch, the world around him came to life. A crescent moon rose in the sky, light falling all around him. The path glowed like a polished pearl, the grass along it slowly turning greener. Cherry trees blossomed into pink as the branches curled up like graceful fingers out of the ground and towards the sky. Purple roses and hyacinths began to bloom, their petals opening up as if to say hello. Row of bleeding hearts along the stone walls opened their flowers, almost seeming to glow from within, and beat like real hearts. Lloyd took a deep breath, inhaling the sweet scents of the garden.

Origami hummingbirds fluttered around his head, leading him up a stone staircase where he saw his Other Mother riding what looked like an enormous praying mantis. She had the gloves from her writing contraption still on, and seemed to be writing on a never-ending roll of paper. Lloyd grinned, and waved to her.

"I love your garden!" he called.

Other Misako waved back, her button eyes glinting in the moonlight. Buttercups sprang to life behind her as her praying mantis marched on. " _Our_ garden, Lloyd!"

Suddenly, a small gang of snapdragons rose up from behind him, nipping at his ankles to tickle him. He squealed, hopping from one foot to the other until he toppled over, the flowers continuing to tickle his sides and stomach. His voice soon grew to hysterical laughter, tossing and turning to keep them away.

"H-hey! Quit it!" he cried, tears springing to his eyes as he laughed harder.

"Oh dear! My son needs me!" his Other Mother gasped. She wrote on the paper more, and plucked a freshly-bloomed foxglove flower, blowing into it like it were a trumpet. The sound echoed around the garden, more flowers springing to bloom as it did. Carved pumpkins surfaced from the pond, water spouting from their tops as they did.

The praying mantis contraption landed beside him, and Other Misako _tsked_ at the flowers. "Tickle my son no more, you little dragon-snappers!" She expertly clipped the flowers at the stem, catching them in a bouquet. Lloyd stood up, dusting off his pants.

Other Misako held the bouquet out to him. He graciously took it, and gasped in surprise as he felt the stems. "They're made out of paper?"

She nodded. "Everything in this garden is paper, son! It's my Writing Garden." She gestured to the roll of paper in front of her. "I just write what I want on this scroll, and it becomes a reality." As Lloyd looked around, closer now at the flowers, he realized she was right; there were subtle folds in the petals and stems, much like the origami hummingbirds earlier.

He smiled. "Anyway, he said it's time for dinner…or breakfast… Um, food?"

Other Misako laughed. "Well, before we go, may I show you something?" She patted the seat behind her, and Lloyd hopped on. She pulled on the gearshift, and wings suddenly sprouted. Lloyd's heart raced with exhilaration as they rose into the air.

He looked down, his mouth dropping open. Below was a portrait of himself, buttercups making up the entirety of his hair. Flowers in soft shades of oranges and cream made the skin, cherry blossom trees adding a luminescent glow. The pumpkins made his eyes, the water spouts having died down.

The purple flowers — crocuses, roses, and hyacinths — made up the words of another poem.

 _Through verdant growths and flowering fields_

 _Shall you make your way to your personal haven_

 _Surrounded by the magic and wonder it wields_

 _Longing for affection_

 _Desiring attention_

 _Everything you want or need is here_

 _Kept in company by those_

 _Who truly hold you dear_

"I can't believe you made this!" Lloyd said with a smile.

"Father said you'd love it," his Other Mother replied. "He knows you like the back of his hand, after all."

~o~o~o~o~

Lloyd stacked pancakes and eggs onto his plate, stuffing it into his mouth happily. "Mmm… This is so good!" Other Garmadon fed the snapdragons, now in a vase, pieces of sausage as he smiled at Lloyd.

Other Misako piled her plated high with food, having a second glass of orange juice. "I do love breakfast for dinner!"

Other Garmadon neatly folded his hands in front of his empty plate. "Lloyd, Mr. Julien has asked you to come watch his snakes perform after dinner," he said.

"Really?" asked Lloyd. "Kai told me that it was all in his head. I knew he was wrong."

"Well, everything is right in this world, son!" his Other Mother said, playfully ruffling his hair. Smiling, Lloyd quickly ate the rest of his food, before his Other Father took his plate away.

"Your mother and I will clean up," he explained, "while you and your friend head upstairs to see the show."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow. "My friend? Who?"

A knock sounded at the door, and Other Garmadon walked over to open it. In the doorway stood Kai, his hair a little less wild than in the real world, and shiny black buttons where his eyes should have been. He smiled at Lloyd, waving at him.

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, it's just you." He stood up and went over to him. "Hello, Asston." However, despite the rude name, Other Kai did not respond. He simply smiled and nodded. Lloyd looked over at Other Garmadon, who merely grinned.

"I thought you would like him a little more if he spoke a little less." He patted Other Kai's spiky hair. "So I fixed him!"

 _Fixed? What could that have mean?_ Lloyd thought. "So…he can't talk at all now?"

"Nope!"

"Hmm…" Lloyd looked Other Kai up and down, and nodded with a smirk. "I like it!"

Other Misako smiled softly, and gently nudged them towards the door. "Go on, you two! You don't want to be late!"

"And have fun!" Other Garmadon added, wrapping an arm around her hip.

Lloyd and Other Kai walked down the steps, going around to the stairs leading up to Zane's apartment. He hadn't noticed it earlier, but the entire building looked even more ornate than the one in the real world; colourful lights on the corners, the walls a much brighter green than the other one. For once, Lloyd felt a lift in his heart at being able to live at the house.

He looked over at Other Kai, who was still smiling brightly, looking around. "You sure are cheerful, considering you can't even talk."

Other Kai simply nodded in agreement, allowing Lloyd to take the lead up the stairs. As they went up, Lloyd couldn't help but ask, "So, did it hurt when he, y'know…" He pointed at his mouth a little awkwardly.

There was a pause, and Other Kai didn't answer, but pointed up past him. Lloyd looked up to see a small blimp flying towards Zane's door, passing through a tiny window above it. They quickly ran up, seeing that it wasn't a window, but merely an opening.

They walked up to the door, and Lloyd carefully knocked, peering through the window. Suddenly, the door spun wildly, flinging them inside.

Lloyd groaned once they landed, but surprisingly felt no soreness anywhere. He helped Other Kai up, and looked around. Two rows of cannons were on either side of the hall, and a little circus tent seemed to be set up at the end.

"Woah… This is pretty cool!" Lloyd exclaimed, walking to what looked like a little ferris wheel. A chicken pecked at a dried corn cob, its stomach heating up, and then popcorn dropped out into a bag from his rear end. Lloyd laughed at the contraption, then jumped when he heard a booming sound.

He whirled around to see Other Kai step on a button, cotton candy shooting out from one of the canons. He caught it out of the air, smiling at Lloyd. As Lloyd turned around to take one of the popcorn bags, he heard several more booming noises. He faced Other Kai again, only to find him covered in cotton candy.

"You look ridiculous!" he laughed, Other Kai grinning in response.

Then, lights shone through the red-and-white-striped curtains, which pulled apart to reveal a circus ring. Lloyd exchanged an excited glance with Other Kai, and they quickly made their way inside, having to crouch down somewhat.

The ring was much larger than it looked on the outside, with a high ceiling much like a real circus big top. Lloyd sat down beside Other Kai, offering him some popcorn as he took a cotton candy off him. A voice soon rang out across the ring.

"Welcome, gentlemen! For your eyes and ears only, you are witnessing the show of a lifetime! I, Zane Antoine Julien, shall be introducing my stupendous, astonishing, astounding…" The blimp from earlier flew in, circling the ring, "…Snake Charming Performance!"

Spotlights shone on the blimp as it flew to the centre, flying up high towards the top. Then, it made an abrupt nosedive to the middle of the ring. The blimp burst, and hundreds upon hundreds of multicoloured snakes flew out, their bodies gliding gracefully as they formed five letters, spelling out "LLOYD".

Lloyd's eyes widened in excitement. "My name!"

The snakes collapsed into a circular formation, a large white snake in the middle. Upbeat flute music began to play, and the snakes began to dance in time with it. They moved in time with the rhythm, their bodies swaying and slithering like the ocean's waves. They weaved in between each other, forming two different rows of dancing snakes. The colours and patterns of their scales seemed to blend into each other, forming one unified hue.

"This is amazing, Kai…" Lloyd whispered, his eyes glued to the dance.

The music grew louder and more wild. The snakes formed a wide circle, which fell into a wide spiral, as a quadruple-tiered platform rose from the ground, the leader white snake at the very top. The snakes lined up right behind it, forming a single line down to the bottom, the flute abruptly stopping.

However, it flew right back into its quick rhythm, as the lead snake began to slither down the platform. As it moved, the other snakes slithered down the side, like raindrops on a car windows. Once all the snakes were off, they fell back into their original circular formation, and the platform dropped like a curtain.

There, playing the final note of the song, was Zane, his own button eyes glittering in the spotlights. He was dressed like a true ringmaster, complete with a tall top hat. The song ended, and Other Zane smiled down at Lloyd and Other Kai, twirling his flute like a baton.

Lloyd clapped, cheering loudly. "That was amazing!"

Other Zane bowed. "Thank you, dear gentlemen. I have worked hard to create something you would love!" The white snake slithered up his arm, looking at him. Other Zane nodded.

Suddenly, he lowered both his arms, and the snakes made their way up his sleeves. Lloyd couldn't believe that there was enough room for all of them, but here it was, right before his eyes. The white snake slithered up on top of Other Zane's head.

Lloyd stood up, helping Other Kai to his feet. "We loved it, Mr. Julien! It was so…so…"

He nodded, eagerly awaiting his praise. "So…?"

"A-amazing!" Lloyd blurted, smiling sheepishly. "I'm at a loss for words, honestly…"

Other Zane chuckled softly. "As long as I can take your breath away, I've achieved my goal," he said with a grin, ruffling Lloyd's hair. "Sleep well, Lloyd."

Lloyd could hardly remember the return to his other bedroom, the show still fresh in his mind. His Other Father tucked him into bed, kissing his forehead as he, his Other Mother, and Other Kai sat by the bedside, Lloyd's stuffed puppy happily curling up next to him.

Returning each of their smiles in turn, Lloyd slowly shut his eyes, drifting off into another deep sleep.

* * *

 **Sorry for being gone for like, three weeks. BUT HERE YA GO!**


	7. Chapter 7

Lloyd awoke early the next morning, hearing his parents shuffling around downstairs. He yawned, looking around. He was back in his real bedroom. Groaning, he sat up, noticing that the doll wasn't on his chair like it usually was. Rather, it was clutched against his chest, his stuffed puppy having fallen off and onto the floor.

Raising an eyebrow, Lloyd put the doll back on the chair, and picked his puppy up. _Weird… I thought I slept like a log._

Once he made his bed, showered, and got dressed, Lloyd hurried down the steps, into the parlour and to the little door, hoping the passage would be there. He immediately tried to swing the door open, only for it to catch and stay shut, making him stumble. He frowned, pulling on it again. "It's locked?" he wondered aloud.

He headed to the kitchen, where his parents were busy organizing papers and files. A bowl of tasteless cereal sat at the table, already prepared for him. He muttered a thanks to his father as he plopped down and ate.

"Hurry up, Lloyd," Garmadon said, not looking at him. "Your mother has to head to the shop today to meet with the broker. She can't be late."

Lloyd huffed. "Why do I have to come?"

"While she's with him, we're going to go clothes shopping for your school uniform." Lloyd rolled his eyes, which his father for once saw. "Don't give me attitude. You know it's necessary. Now hurry up and eat."

~o~o~o~o~

As they drove down to the building where the tea shop would be, Lloyd rambled to them about his latest adventure to the Other World. "You guys should've seen it! There were flowers and hummingbirds made completely out of paper, and a poem made out of them!"

Neither of them listened. Misako sorted through her files and forms, as Garmadon multitasked between reviewing his own files and watching the road as he drove. Nonetheless, Lloyd continued even as they pulled up to the side of the road.

"Oh! And upstairs, there was an actual snake circus! Like, a real one, not the one that the crazy guy pretends to have in our house."

Misako turned to Garmadon. "Are you sure you won't come?"

Garmadon kissed her cheek, and pointed to his neckbrace. "Don't worry, it'll be fine. I know you'll make a good impression on him." He turned around to Lloyd. "I did not call him crazy, Lloyd. He's…an addict, or something."

Lloyd rolled his eyes in response as Misako opened the door to grab a box beside Lloyd. She tousled his hair, smiling. "I'll see you later, my dizzy little dreamer."

"Mo-om!" he sputtered, his cheeks reddening. "I'm not five anymore!"

She shook her head. "I know." She shut the door, and headed up the sidewalk to the shop.

Garmadon and Lloyd soon made it to the clothing store, which had a moss-covered sign pointing out where it was located. It was much smaller than Lloyd hoped, being a hole in the wall rather than an actual department store.

Lloyd sat at the bottom of a staircase leading to the second floor, his chin in his hands, while Garmadon looked around for his school uniform. He blew a strand of hair out of his face, his eyelids feeling heavier with every passing second.

A flicker of green caught his eye. He looked over, and saw a rather fetching emerald jacket. He grinned, standing up and pulling it off the hanger. When he put it on, he went over to the mirror, turning various ways to see how it fit him. _There's no way Dad can say no to this,_ he thought smugly.

Suddenly, a loud banging from the staircase made him whirl around.

"My kingdom for a hoooooooorse!" a little boy yelled as he rode down the stairs on a wheeled step stool, an older boy chasing after him. A crash was heard, along with a clothing rack toppling over, the stool wheeling back over unceremoniously.

Lloyd blinked at the odd occurrence. _Weird town._ Then, he glanced at the stool, an idea forming in his head.

While Garmadon was searching through a pile of blazers a clerk was showing him, Lloyd wheeled around on the stool, posing dramatically for his father. He came to a slow halt behind him, his chest puffed out proudly.

Without turning around, Garmadon muttered, "Put it back, Lloyd."

"But Dad!" Lloyd groaned as his father turned around, holding a blazer up to him to see how it would fit, "Everyone at school is gonna be wearing the same clothes. All grey, and boring… Nobody's going to have something like this."

Nodding to the clerk, Garmadon glared at Lloyd as he folded the blazer. "Put. It. Back."

Lloyd jumped off the stool, kicking it away. "You always said you wanted me to stand out, and not be a part of a crowd. Y'know, to be myself? Now you're forcing me into being another face in some boring uniform school?"

Garmadon lowered his voice sternly. "You're acting like a child, Lloyd. You're fourteen. Start acting like it."

In silence they went to the checkout desk, where Lloyd took the jacket off and hung it on another rack. "I bet my Other Father would buy it for me."

Garmadon worked with the PIN pad as he gave Lloyd a sour look. "Then maybe he should buy all your clothes, shouldn't he?" he asked dryly.

"If only," Lloyd hissed back, turning away from him.

~o~o~o~o~

On the way back home, Lloyd glared out the car window, watching the raindrops slide down. "So, what do you think's in the other apartment?" he asked, not looking at his father.

"Definitely not a family of imposters," Garmadon said. "Probably more bricks."

"Then why did you lock the door?"

He sniffed. "I found some shed snake skin near it this morning." His voice was a little softer this time, almost wary. "And…I just thought it would make you feel…safer."

Lloyd snorted, finally turning around. "They're circus snakes, Dad! Besides, the dreams aren't dangerous at all! They're the most fun I've had since we came here!"

Garmadon gave a weak smile. "Your school might be fun."

He rolled his eyes, turning away again. "With those dumb uniforms? Sure."

"You have to give it a try," Garmadon sighed.

They didn't talk for the rest of the ride home, the rain growing harder as they drove. Lloyd grudgingly helped carry his uniform inside, sitting down with a huff at the kitchen table. Garmadon came in soon after, peering into the fridge.

"How would you like a…salsa…mustard wrap for lunch?" he asked.

Lloyd wrinkled his nose. "Please tell me you're joking."

Garmadon chuckled. "Well, I had to go food shopping anyway." He grinned, closing the fridge door. "Your mother's got something special in mind for supper."

Lloyd stuck his tongue out as he gagged. "Can't wait for that trainwreck."

His father smiled a little brighter, patting Lloyd's shoulder. "Do you want to come along? You can pick out something you like."

"Oh? Like the jacket?" Lloyd spat.

Garmadon sighed, straightening up. "Lloyd, I promise that once everything with the store is all straightened out, and if things go all right today, I'll make it up to you. We can do whatever you want."

He snorted. "You always say that. And yet, not once have we ever done anything I like. When's that gonna change? When I'm in college and it doesn't even matter anymore?"

A look of hurt flashed in Garmadon's eyes, but Lloyd didn't care; he had to tell his father at some point what he felt, and if this had to be the time, so be it. Garmadon sighed, walking to the door. "I won't be long," he said, closing the door behind him.

Lloyd slouched in the chair, looking out the window and towards the forest. The forest that held the wishing well everyone at Emerald Heights always talked about. His frown soon grew into a smile. and he fished around in his pocket, pulling out a quarter.

"But I might be."

* * *

 **The best day to write a chapter for this story is a cloudy day~**

 **Unfortunately it's been sunny for the past few weeks and all the snow is gone.**

 **Stay tuned!**


	8. Chapter 8

Lloyd hurried down the forest path he'd taken the day they first arrived at Emerald Heights, the rain for once stopping, as though even the sky itself was showing him what to do. He grinned. _What does Dad know about the Other World anyway? If it were so dangerous, I would've noticed it by now!_

Soon, he arrived back at the circle of mushrooms surrounding the well, the wooden cover still exposed. He crouched beside it, not caring about the mud staining his worn-out jeans. Pulling the quarter from his pocket, he searched the cover for the little hole before he spoke.

"I wish…that I could finally leave," he murmured, searching for the right words. "I wish I could live in the Other World forever, where I can do what I want! Where I can just be me…and never have to come back here. Where I have neighbours I like, my room is just what I want it to be, and my parents actually love me!" Nodding to himself with a grin, he dropped the quarter through the hole, pressing his ear to the cover. Once he heard a quiet splash, he stood up, brushed off his knees, and made his way back down the path.

 _I hope it works…_ he thought. _Now all I have to do is find out where Dad hid the key._

He kicked off his rain boots at the door, hanging up his raincoat on the coatrack. He ran to the kitchen, opening up the key drawer. As he sifted through it, he couldn't find the button-ended key. Lloyd frowned.

"If I were Dad, where would I put a key…?" he wondered out loud. He looked around the kitchen, wondering what the best hiding place would be. His eyes soon wandered to a little hook above the door leading to the hallway. He smirked. "Of course he'd put it there."

Lloyd pulled a chair from the table over to the door, and stacked several of his parents' books onto it. He climbed onto them, standing on his tiptoes to try and reach it. _My growth spurt better hit soon…!_ he thought in frustration as his fingers just barely brushed the end of it. He successfully knocked the key off the hook, catching it before it fell to the ground.

Putting everything back where it was before, he hurried to the parlour. He slid down to his knees, shoving the key into the keyhole and unlocking the little door. He stopped for a brief moment, listening for his father's car. If he wasn't going to be gone for long, it was still possible he'd be back so soon, right? Nonetheless, he heard nothing from the driveway.

However, he did notice the falcon perched on the windowsill, almost seeming to stare at him. He waved to it, snorting. _Not like it'll tell Dad where I'm going._

Taking a deep breath, Lloyd shut his eyes and opened the door wide. A cool wind whispered against his face, and he peeked between his eyelids. His eyes flew wide open when the familiar blue-violet light shone back at him, the tunnel extending far to the door at the other end.

"I knew it was real," he whispered, beginning his way through the tunnel once more.

The light almost felt more vibrant this time, possibly because it was daytime in his world. It was hypnotic, as if the Other World itself had its own mind and was welcoming him. _I'm back,_ he thought, smiling as he tried to direct the thought to the world. _I'm here for you._

Once again, he was in the Other World's parlour. Though it was nighttime in this world — the moon and stars never seemed to leave the sky — the room still looked brighter than the last two times. Warm light enveloped all around him, the furniture having a glimmering appearance. He sniffed the air, grinning as he was met with the smell of food, as always.

He hurried to the kitchen, surprised to see that his Other Father and Other Mother weren't there. However, the food on the table was no less inviting. Lunch was served, several plates piled high with hot dogs, burgers, and grilled cheese sandwiches. Bowls of potato salad and curly fries surrounded a three-tiered dessert tower in the centre, filled to the edges of its delicate plates with cupcakes, cookies, and brownies.

At Lloyd's usual spot was a large black box, a note attached to the lid. Lloyd picked it up and read it.

 _Dearest Lloyd,_

 _Mr. Belmonte and Mr. Walker have invited you downstairs after lunch for a special performance. As such, I decided to make an outfit for you to suit the occasion. I hope you'll love it as much as I do!_

 _Love, Father_

He chuckled softly to himself. "Dad never seemed like the kind of person to make me clothes." Lloyd opened the box, and smiled brightly as he saw a silver jacket, a green t-shirt with a gold dragon design on the front, khaki pants, and emerald sneakers. "But my Other Father knows just what to give me."

Putting the box aside, he sat down at his chair, and immediately began to dig into his lunch.

~o~o~o~o~

Lloyd immediately dressed into the new outfit once he was finished his lunch, loving how he looked in it. _Too bad Dad missed out on his chance to buy me something nice._ He made his way outside, giving a small burp thanks to how much he ate. Chuckling, he patted his stomach, and hopped down the stairs.

The night air was quiet, but he could see fireflies flitting around his head. He smiled, holding out a finger for one to land on. "It's kinda weird how it's always nighttime here," he said, knowing the bug wouldn't respond. "But I don't mind. As long as it's better than the real world, I'm more than happy to be here."

A screech suddenly split the air, and the firefly flew off. Startled, Lloyd spun around in the direction of the sound. He looked up at the roof of the house, and saw a familiar shape perched on the edge. The falcon called again, before it flew towards Lloyd, landing behind him on a large boulder.

Smirking, Lloyd carefully walked over to it. "Kai's got a bird like you at home," he said. "Not the quiet one, the one that talks too much. He said you belonged to Mr. Julien. Of course, the weird one, not the fun one." He put his hands on his hips, the falcon preening itself. "You must be the Other Falcon."

The falcon looked up at him, his eyes narrowed. "No," he said, his voice incredibly deep for such an elegant-looking bird. "I'm not the other anything. I'm me." Lloyd's eyes widened, and the falcon almost seemed to look amused.

"I…can see you don't have button eyes," he remarked. "But you can't be the same falcon. How would you be able to talk, anyways?"

The falcon shrugged. "I just can." He flew to a nearby log, ruffling his feathers.

Lloyd rolled his eyes, leaning against the boulder. "Birds don't talk at home. Unless of course, its a parrot."

"Is that so?"

"Um, yeah?"

The falcon snorted contemptuously. "I'll take your word for it. Clearly you're the expert in these matters." Then, it glared pointedly at him. "After all, I'm just a big, fat chicken, aren't I? And chickens don't talk."

Lloyd gulped, smiling awkwardly as the falcon turned away. "C-come back! Please? I'm sorry, I didn't mean anything I said, I swear!" He took a deep breath, laughing in an effort to lighten the mood, walking over to the fallen tree. "Um, so how did you get here?"

The falcon hopped up near a a thick root. "I've been coming here often." He disappeared behind the root, and popped up from out of a knot hole beside Lloyd, who jumped in response.

"It's a game that we play." He pointed his beak at the house. "He hates birds, and tries to keep me out. But he can't catch me." He poked his head through the knot hole, which appeared through another hole a little farther down the tree. "I have wings. I can come and go as I please."

Lloyd frowned. "My Other Father…hates birds?"

"Not like any 'father' I've ever seen," the falcon snorted.

He scoffed, folding his arms across his chest. "What do you mean by that? He'd amazing!"

The falcon shook his head, flying back up to the roof. Lloyd insistently followed, not wanting the falcon to get away from him so soon. "You probably think this world is a dream come true, don't you? But you're wrong. The Other Kai told me so."

"Yeah, right! He can't talk!" Lloyd protested. At this point, he wasn't sure if the falcon was just playing tricks on him, or was being serious.

"Maybe not to you," the falcon said, as though pitying Lloyd's lack of intelligence. "But unlike humans, we birds use our senses to survive. We can see and smell things that you have no awareness of, and—" He suddenly paused, and turned his head. "Shh! Do you hear that? Sounds like…" He then flew off behind the house, out of Lloyd's sight.

Lloyd was about to go after him, but he shook his head. _He'll just be all cryptic again._ Shrugging, he turned his attention back to the note that his Other Father left him, that Cole and Jay had a show prepared for him.

He made his way to the steps leading to their apartment. The entrance wasn't nearly as simple as the blue door and black curtains, anymore; the door was outlined with chaser lights, all lit up in several colours.

Smiling in anticipation, Lloyd opened the door, and stepped inside.

* * *

 **Hmm... I wonder if the falcon's telling the truth?**

 **Stay tuned!**


	9. Chapter 9

Pushing through the velvet curtains, Lloyd looked around the darkened room. It was much larger than Cole and Jay's apartment in the real world, looking more like a professional theatre. Countless rows of seats were spread before him, with two balconies at the top. The stage itself was unlit, but he could still see it held a resemblance to an ornate cathedral.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen!" a voice boomed, which Lloyd recognized as Jay's. "May we present our special guest of the night: Lloyd Garmadon!"

Spotlights centred on Lloyd, and he squinted his eyes from the sudden brightness. Clapping and cheers erupted from the seats, and Lloyd jumped as he realized they looked like the mannequins in the real world, but now with smiling faces and their own button eyes, and wearing the sparkling outfits that Jay showed him in the real world. It looked like their faces were neatly drawn on with permanent marker, with simplistic, yet animated expressions.

Another light shone before Lloyd, and he saw it was Bruiser, now with little black button eyes, holding a flashlight in his mouth. Geode stood beside him — having his own button eyes — his tail high in greeting. Smiling, Lloyd let them guide him down the aisle to the front row. Although the clapping and eyes on him intimidated him a little, Lloyd couldn't help but feel his ego boosting.

An empty seat beside Other Kai awaited him, a smaller spotlight on it. Other Kai waved at him, his usual wide smile on his face. Lloyd nodded in greeting.

"This is amazing, Kai!" he whispered, the lights dimming. The clapping subsided, and spotlights shone on the red curtains of the stage. The curtains parted, revealing a mostly empty stage, with the exception of two large poles on opposite sides.

Jay's shrill voice sounded from behind the stage. "What do you mean you aren't ready?!"

"I mean I'm not ready! You know as well as I do that we can't go out there like this!" Cole's response was even louder, his voice seeming to bounce off the walls. Lloyd rolled his eyes. He should have known that these two would be just as dysfunctional in the Other World.

Suddenly, Jay stomped out from the left side of the stage, having white buttons in place of his eyes, and Lloyd snorted. The middle-aged man was wearing nothing but sequinned blue boxer briefs, a bit of fringe around the cuffs, and wristbands and anklets of the same colour.

"He's practically naked!" Lloyd whispered to Kai, shaking his arm.

"Well, I'm sorry that this is so inconvenient for you!" Jay snapped, his hands on his hips. "But this has been planned for _forever_!"

Cole soon stepped out from the other side of the stage, having the same white buttons that Jay had for eyes. He was wearing nothing but what looked like black spandex briefs. Lloyd could hardly tell; his enormous gut hung over the waistband.

"Holy crap…" he whispered, his eyes wide.

"You didn't tell me we were going on early!" Cole shot back, folding his arms across his chest. "Why do you always spring these things on me?!"

Jay frowned, gesturing to the audience as he spoke. "If you keep yelling like this, you'll disappoint all of our fans! Especially since Lloyd came so far just to see us!" Jay grinned as he turned to the audience, as if he was taunting Cole. "Isn't that right, everyone?"

In response, the crowd of mannequins-come-to-life booed loudly, shaking their heads and gesticulating wildly. Lloyd tried not to laugh as Kai also took on a disappointed expression, sticking his thumb down.

Cole shook his head. "Fine. But maybe we can settle this in our own way, hm?" His thick eyebrows wiggled teasingly. "You know…our classic way?"

Jay smirked. "Only if you're up for it."

With that, both men went backstage, and the crowd began to murmur quietly. The lights faded from the stage, and Lloyd looked over at Kai. He didn't seem fazed by the turn of events, and merely exchanged an excited glance with Lloyd. Music began playing through the speakers, the kind that Lloyd would hear just outside a nightclub in the city.

Then, the spotlights came back, but were pointed at the balconies on either side of the stage. In spite of their non-athletic figures, they perfectly balanced themselves on the railings, as though they were cats rather than people.

Lloyd gulped, covering his eyes. "Tell me when its over!" he whispered, peeking through his fingers. The music started to build up as they walked to the edge.

"Ready whenever you are, Cole!" Jay shouted, looking down at the stage.

"All eyes are on us now!" Cole yelled, adjusting his stance on the railing.

As they seemed to lean forward, letting gravity pull them down towards the stage, Jay reached up to the top of his head. Lloyd at first thought he was scratching his head, until he saw a silver gleam. A zipper. Jay pulled it all the way down his body, revealing it to be nothing but a suit, out from which a much younger version of himself emerged, wearing the same briefs, anklets and bracelets. He was built like a swimmer, his hair a much more vibrant ginger than before.

His mouth gaping, Lloyd whipped his head to look at Cole, who did the same thing. Gone was his potbelly, replaced by defined abs and thick biceps. Like Jay, he was still in his same outfit of black briefs. Their white buttons were replaced with black, shining in the stage lights.

They both fell from their balconies as the bass dropped, and the spotlights focused on the poles at either side of the stage. Cole grabbed his pole with his hands, swinging down to the bottom, while Jay wrapped his legs around his pole, twirling down until his head was mere inches from the stage. They flashed bright smiles to the crowd, their attention particularly focused on Lloyd.

He grinned, excitedly gripping the armrests. "H-how'd they do that?" he whispered to Kai, who merely shrugged, beaming.

The music grew wilder, and with it, Cole and Jay began to move. Cole swung his way up the pole, wrapping his legs around it to gracefully twirl, then gripping tightly and swaying his lower body as if it were a flag. Jay gripped the pole, and hoisted the rest of his body backwards up it, staying upside down almost the entire time. Soon, Cole and Jay's moves were in sync, swinging around the pole and sliding down into splits to the floor, then back up again in a wide twirl. Lloyd couldn't believe how stable they were, their limbs not once trembling with the effort.

"Well, Cole!" Jay panted as he spun, looking at him with a grin. "Maybe you've gotten better!"

"I could say the same about you!" Cole said, reaching out to grab one of Jay's legs. "But I don't think we can do this alone!"

Jay laughed, and, despite Cole's grip on his leg, gracefully slid to the stage, Cole following. "You're right. Maybe Lloyd could volunteer to dance with us?"

Lloyd's eyes widened as a spotlight shone on him again, and his cheeks flushed as Kai encouragingly patted his shoulder. "M-me?"

"Of course! Don't worry, we won't make you do anything too hard!" Cole said, holding a hand out to him. Lloyd couldn't help but notice a large pearl ring on his finger, glinting in the light. How could he dance with that on?

Nonetheless, Lloyd happily took it, and let him pull him onto the stage. "So, what do I do?"

"Hold on tight!"

Cole lifted him up, and he instinctively clung to him, wrapping his arms around his neck. A third pole had risen from the stage, and Jay had already made his way to the top of it. Cole gripped onto it, and Lloyd prepared himself to be squashed between him and the pole. Luckily, Cole kept a safe distance between them, and climbed up halfway to twirl around it.

Suddenly, Jay was on the opposite side of the pole as Cole, and their legs interlocked so they were spinning at the same speed and time. It was much faster than it looked to Lloyd, but he didn't get any kind of sick feeling in his stomach like he thought he would. He found himself laughing in delight, even as Cole and Jay bent over backwards, so all he could see was the stage below.

Then, as the music began to reach its end, Cole used one hand to loosen Lloyd's grip. "Now, stand up! Your audience awaits you!" Jay said, as he and Cole extended their arms as far as they could go, their bodies perpendicular to the pole.

Gulping, Lloyd shakily stood on top of their calves, which didn't give at all under his weight, and threw his arms out wide once the music stopped.

The audience roared, cheering and applause coming from every corner, everyone standing up from their seats. Even Kai had stood, and pulled out a rose from his pocket, throwing it to Lloyd. He stumbled to catch it somewhat, not wanting to prick himself with a thorn. His smile only grew wider as he waved to the audience.

At last he was the centre of attention.

~o~o~o~o~

His Other Father and Other Mother were waiting for them at the top of the steps, smiling brightly. The full moon had risen behind them, illuminating the yard. They were both dressed like they had just been on a date, Other Garmadon's hair finely coiffed and Other Misako in a beautiful emerald dress.

"Did you have fun, Lloyd?" Other Misako asked.

"Was it wonderful?" Other Garmadon added.

Lloyd ran up to them, hugging them both. Other Kai hung back as they made their way to the front porch. "You should've seen it! They started out arguing, Cole and Jay, but it turned out they were wearing disguises! They weren't old guys at all! Then they were swinging and spinning, and then I got to join them! They make it look so easy, but it's way harder up close and…" he laughed, breathless. "It was like magic."

Other Garmadon smiled at him. "You do like it here, don't you?"

"Yeah!" Lloyd turned and smiled at Other Kai, whose own smile had seemed to fade. "Goodnight, Kai! I'll be back soon, don't worry!"

Other Misako held the door open for him, who took him into the house as his Other Father stayed behind, probably to bid farewell to Other Kai.

Soon, Lloyd heard the door close, and Other Garmadon was right behind them. "You could stay here forever," he suggested, smiling at Lloyd. "If you wanted to."

"Really?" Lloyd asked, beaming.

"Sure!" Other Misako said. "We'll sing, and play games, and Father will cook all your favourite meals."

Other Garmadon rested his hand on Lloyd's shoulder. "But there's just one, tiny thing we have to do first."

"What's that?"

Other Misako giggled, leading him to the dining room. "It's a surprise."

Other Garmadon led him to his seat at the end of the dining table, as Other Misako took her seat. He pulled a box adorned with a bow out from under his chair, placing it in front of Lloyd before he sat down.

"For you," Other Garmadon murmured, "our little doll."

Excitedly, Lloyd removed the lid. His smile faded, and his brow furrowed, as he saw what was inside. Two black buttons, and a spool of black thread and a needle in between them. He forced a smile back, and looked up at his Other parents, hoping that one of them would say it was a joke and not his real present.

"Now, black is traditional," Other Garmadon said. Then, he lifted his fingers up to his own button eyes. "But if you'd prefer red—" His buttons flashed to a bright red colour, "Or…perhaps viridian—" Other Misako tilted her glasses down, her eyes flashing to a bluish-green colour, "Or maybe…saffron?" The buttons in Lloyd's box changed briefly to a golden-yellow colour, before switching back to black. "Although…you might make me jealous."

Lloyd's heart thundered in his chest, and he shoved the box away. "No! There's no way you're sewing buttons into my eyes!"

"Oh, but we need a yes!" Other Garmadon laughed, pushing the box back to him. "If you want to stay here, that is."

Other Misako took the needle from the box, tapping the tip of her finger on it. "Don't fret, Lloyd. It's so sharp you won't feel a—Ow!" Other Garmadon kicked her leg under the table, and she sheepishly grinned, putting the needle back.

"Now…it's your decision, Lloyd," Other Garmadon assured, though Lloyd could have sworn he heard some impatience in his tone. "We only want what's best for you." He put his hand on Lloyd's shoulder again, but this time it was icy cold. Immediately, Lloyd shot out of his chair.

"I-I'm going to bed!" he snapped. "R-right now!"

Other Garmadon gave a concerned smile. "Bed?"

"Before dinner?" Other Misako asked, frowning worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm…really tired." He yawned, trying to hide his fear as he stretched his arms out. "It'll be better if I just sleep and…think on things." He made his way to the staircase, only to be followed by his Other parents.

"Of course you do," his Other Father said, the corner of his mouth twitching ever so slightly. "I'll be happy to tuck you in."

"No!" he spat, gulping and putting his palms out in front of him defensively. "I-It's okay, I mean. I can go on my own. Y-you've done so much already, thank you—" As he turned to the stairs, he jumped when Other Garmadon suddenly appeared in front of him, soon joined by Other Misako.

"You're very welcome. And I…" he trailed off, wrapping his arm around Other Misako's waist, "…we, aren't worried at all. Soon, you'll see things…" he reached out, tapping Lloyd's nose as he finished softly, "our way."

They stepped aside, and Lloyd shakily smiled, and slowly made his way up the stairs, not breaking eye contact with them. They watched him leave, their grins never fading even once. He forced himself to control his breath, not wanting to betray his fear to them.

The second he was out of their sight, he bolted up the stairs, and to his bedroom.

He slammed the door behind him, panting heavily. The toys that were once on his shelf had now crowded around at his feet, looking up at him with their new button eyes.

"What's wrong, Lloyd?" they all asked in unison, their voices a soft chorus. "Don't you want to stay and play?" They backed him up against their door, their little arms reaching out for him. Glaring, he picked them all up, shoving them into the chest at the end of his bed.

"It's better here, Lloyd!" a toy dragon insisted as he threw it into the chest.

Even his stuffed puppy barked at him eagerly, its tail wagging as it stared at him with lifeless, black button eyes. Shaking his head, he grabbed it and threw it in, too.

"Come on, Lloyd! Where are your buttons?" a voice called from his bedside table. He whipped his head to see that even Brad and Gene in the photograph had button eyes.

"Why don't you wanna stay?" Gene demanded as he picked the photo up, putting it into the chest and slamming the lid shut.

"I'm going home tonight, you creeps!" he declared as he pushed the chest in front of the door, along with his bookshelf and dresser, grunting with the effort. "And I'm not coming back!"

As soon as the door was barricaded, he leapt onto his bed, diving under the blankets. His heart was still thumping loudly in his chest, and he brought his knees up to his chest, desperately curling into a fetal position.

"Go to sleep, Lloyd," he whispered to himself. "Just go to sleep…" He repeated it like a mantra, tossing and turning as his Other parents' voices filled his head, invading it, trying to alter everything that he wanted.

 _There's just one, tiny thing we have to do first._

 _So sharp you won't feel a thing._

 _Soon, you'll see things…our way._

After what felt like a torturous eternity, Lloyd was finally wrapped in the clutches of sleep, dragging him into oblivion.

* * *

 **What, you guys thought I could only write romance? THINK AGAIN.**

 **Stay tuned!**


	10. Chapter 10

Even through his squeezed-shut eyelids, Lloyd could feel the daylight shimmering through his blanket, and he smiled to himself. _It worked! I'm back!_ He threw off the blanket. "Mom! Dad!"

But when he looked around, he was in his Other bedroom, the door still barricaded. "Crap," he muttered. "I'm still here?" He sat on the edge of his bed, tapping his feet against the hard floor, wondering what he would do next.

Suddenly, he heard a swish under his door, but heard no footsteps at all. Raising an eyebrow, Lloyd noticed that someone slid a folded note under the door to him. Looking around, he knelt down and picked it up. "Mother" was written on the back of it. He unfolded the note, and began to read it.

 _i truLy wish i could hElp you_

 _but no mAtter what i haVe beEn strung by fate_

 _your Life is what you want it to bE_

 _so do not let us influence you_

 _you mAy return to your old life_

 _of boredom and longing for your old home_

 _or you can stay here with us foreVer_

 _but no mattEr what you choose_

 _just remember_

 _mother Loves you with all hEr heArt_

 _mother loVes you with all her hEart_

 _mother loves you with alL her heart_

 _mothEr loves you with All her heart_

 _mother loVes you with all her hEart_

 _mother Loves you with all hEr heArt_

 _mother loVes you with all her hEart_

His eyes widened. This was nothing like any of the other poems his Other Mother had written. Rather than her neat handwriting, it was like she was writing with her non-dominant hand. Not only that, but there was no rhythm or rhyme to it, not to mention the oddly capitalized letters. Frowning, he pushed aside his chest, dresser, and bookshelf from his door, shoving the letter into his pocket and tiptoeing outside.

The entire house had fallen quiet. No whistling or humming from the kitchen, neither of his Other parents making idle conversation downstairs. It was as if he was completely alone. Gulping, he crept down the stairs, hoping he could make it to the parlour room without being spotted by anyone; if he went through the little door, maybe he could get home.

When he made it to the doors, he pulled on the handles. He fell back with the effort, as he realized too late the doors were locked. Glaring at the doors, he tried again, planting his foot against the door for leverage, but it was still no use.

A rusty-sounding creak was heard behind him. He whipped around, but saw no one. Lloyd focused on the noise, and turned to see the door to his Other Mother's study was just barely open. Steeling himself, he went over to it, opening the door all the way.

Other Misako was facing away from him, the mechanism in front of her slowly creaking as she wrote on her paper, her hands moving at a snail's pace.

Lloyd narrowed his eyes. "Hey, you! Where's my Other Father? I want to go home!" he demanded.

As she turned around, Lloyd couldn't help but notice her appearance; her glasses sat askew upon her nose, her hair greying at the tips. Bags had formed under her button eyes, and even her hands looked wrinkled, like crumpled pieces of paper.

"All will be swell, once Father's had his rest," she spoke, her voice eerily slow. "His strength is our strength." The gloves hands of the contraption shot out, one wrapping around her mouth, the other wagging a scolding finger in her face, before spinning her back to her desk. "I'm sorry… I mustn't speak when Father isn't here."

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Shaking his head, Lloyd turned away. "If you won't talk to me, then I'll find the Other Kai. He'll help me."

"There's no point." Lloyd's brow furrowed, and he turned back to Other Misako, who hunched over in her chair as she faced him. "He pulled a long face…" she hooked her fingers into the corners of her mouth, yanking them down as far as her chest, her lips almost seeming to tear with the effort, "… _and Father didn't like that_."

Suddenly, the gloved hands sprang back out, one aggressively shutting her mouth as the other grabbed her by the braid and yanked her backwards towards her desk. His heart nearly stopping in fright, Lloyd sprinted out of the room, running to the back door.

He threw the door open, not caring that it was wide open, and ran down the back porch, towards the garden and down the trail. He tripped on a step, but didn't care. He looked over his shoulder, the Other house growing smaller as the distance between them widened. Even as the path made its way to the rocky cliffs he didn't stop running. Lloyd panted, finally slowing to a fast walk as he was hidden in the cherry trees, lush with verdant leaves. As he continued walking, the trees lost their leaves, becoming more like claws reaching up to rake the sky.

A familiar screech sounded near him, and Lloyd looked over to see the falcon flying beside him. "And where do you think you're going?" he asked, keeping his flight in time with Lloyd's walking pace.

Lloyd sighed. "I'm getting out of here, even if it means going to some other weird place."

Soon, the sky brightened, and it took Lloyd a moment to realize it wasn't a natural brightness. He looked up, and saw that the sky not only brightened to a stark white, but the trees had thinned into wire-like shapes of what they once were. Despite this, Lloyd kept walking into the nothingness.

"Something's wrong," Lloyd mused, partially to himself. "Shouldn't the wishing well be here?"

The falcon shook his head. "Nothing else out here. It's the empty part of this world. He only made what he knew would impress you. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing else you could have wanted here."

Lloyd's brow furrowed. "But why? Why does he want me, specifically?"

"He wants something to love…I think," the falcon explained. "Something that isn't himself." He chuckled deeply. "Or maybe…he'd just love something to eat."

Lloyd rolled his eyes. "That's ridiculous. Fathers don't…" he trailed off, shivering at the mere suggestion, "…eat their sons."

The falcon eyed him. "I wouldn't be so sure about that. After all, how do you taste?" As Lloyd's nose wrinkled in disgust, he cackled, flying up a bit higher.

The further they walked, the more Lloyd was starting to wonder if there really was no end to the nothingness. However, once they reached a certain point — if there even was one in the blankness — a shape began to form. Like little pixels, the Other house reformed itself bit by bit, the sky putting itself back together like a puzzle. The trees and shrubs regrew around the house, as if they never left in the first place. When Lloyd turned around, even the area they just came from had reformed into itself again.

"Huh? But…how can you walk away from something, and still come back to it?" he wondered aloud.

The falcon perched on a nearby stump, preening himself. "Walk around the world."

Lloyd folded his arms across his chest, grimacing. "Small world."

Suddenly, a rattling noise sounded from beside them, inside the bushes. The falcon was instantly alert, his eyes narrowed in focus. "Hang on." Lloyd went silent, and the rattling sounded again, louder this time. From under the foliage crept a little blue snake, rattling its tail as it slithered.

The falcon was on it in an instant, barely two seconds passing as he flew into the air, grabbing the snake in his talons. Lloyd's eyes widened.

"Stop! He's one of Zane's circus snakes! You'll—" He didn't have time to finish his sentence as the falcon tore into it with his sharp beak. The snake stopped moving, its tail no longer rattling, as its entire body lengthened and swelled, its vibrant scales growing patchy in places, sand spilling out of its now-gaping mouth. Even its eyes had changed into lifeless black buttons.

Lloyd gasped, stepping back in horror. "It's… What is it?"

The falcon released the snake, looking down at it in contempt. "I don't like snakes at the best of times. I personally prefer mice and rats. But this snake in particular was sounding an alarm." Without another word, the falcon flew off into the night, and out of Lloyd's sight.

He gulped before he whispered to himself, "Good birdy…"

Lloyd headed back up to the front porch, taking notice of the umbrella stand just outside the door. He took a deep breath, and picked up a heavy cane from the stand, hitting it into his hand. "Time to go home."

* * *

 **A bit of a short chapter this week, but I hope I'm helping to build a little suspense here~**

 **Stay tuned!**


	11. Chapter 11

Lloyd marched up to the parlour doors, looking around. There was no more creaking from Other Misako's study; the room itself looking empty. Deafening silence filled his ears, his pounding heart the only indication that he hadn't lost his hearing. He looked at the cane in his hands, and nodded before jamming it into the door handles. Putting one foot on the door to brace himself, he pulled with all his might.

The left door's handle and lock broke off, the screws tinkling to the floor. He put the cane on the floor and pushed the door open.

The parlour for once was pitch black, the only source of light being that from the hall, casting a dim glow on the little door. Grinning, Lloyd tiptoed his way in, not wanting to alert the Other Father to his presence.

When he was a mere foot away from the door, an enormous armoire-shaped bug crab-stepped into his path, blocking it off. Lloyd jumped back, and the parlour door slammed, leaving him in darkness for a brief moment. The room lit up again, but this time in a sickly-purple glow, the parlour having been redecorated with various bug-themed furniture; lamps were now enormous fireflies, the coffee table in the centre had become a roach, and beetles had been transformed into deformed armchairs.

A long, violet couch spun around, revealing Other Garmadon, smiling his usual picture-perfect smile. "They say that even the proudest spirits can be broken…" he began, lifting one hand up to his chest, "…with love."

He gestured to a chair behind Lloyd, which quickly got up and crawled over to him, forcing him to take a seat. Startled, Lloyd gripped the armrests as he was carried to the opposite side of the roach coffee table.

Other Garmadon lifted the lid off another box, revealing an assortment of candies. Looking closer, Lloyd's stomach turned as he realized the "candies" were squirming.

"Of course, chocolate never hurts!" He held the box out to Lloyd. "Would you like one? They're cocoa beetles, from the Hiroshi Jungle." Without waiting for an answer, the Other Father happily picked one up, biting the head off first. Lloyd gulped as the poor beetle's insides oozed like caramel into Other Garmadon's mouth.

Taking a deep breath through his nose, Lloyd narrowed his eyes. "I…want to go home. To be with my real mom and dad. I want you to let me go!"

The Other Father's expression shifted, swallowing the beetle hard as he turned his gaze to Lloyd, his mouth a stiff line. "Is that any way to speak to your father?"

Rage boiled up inside Lloyd's stomach, replacing his queasiness. "You. Aren't. My father," he spat through his teeth.

Other Garmadon's lip twitched, and his button eyes no longer held a playful gleam, now black as coals. "Apologize. At once. Lloyd." His voice was strained, holding back every ounce of anger he could possibly be feeling.

Lloyd didn't back down. Unblinking, and unflinching, he leaned in, spitting out his response. "No."

His hands shaking, Other Garmadon stood up, his arms stiffly at his sides. "I will give you to the count of three, Lloyd. One…" As Lloyd glared at him, he saw that the Other Father was growing taller, his face becoming more angular.

" _Two_ …" His skin darkened, until it was pitch-black, as if all his skin had been burned off. White, bone-like markings showed on his cheekbones and chin, and his eyes brightened into a blood red. Lloyd's eyes widened in fear as he still grew taller, until he towered over him, his arms and hands now skinny as needles. His last word was an ear-piercing shriek.

" ** _THREE!_** " The transformed Other Father grabbed a fistful of Lloyd's hair, dragging him out of the parlour.

"OW! What are you doing?! Let me go!" Despite his protests, he had no issues dragging Lloyd down the hall, his silver jacket falling off in the process. "Stop it, that hurts!" Lloyd kicked his heels into the floor, but it didn't slow the Other Father down.

Soon, he brought Lloyd to a mirror at the end of the hall. He picked Lloyd up, and threw him in, passing through the mirror as if it were water.

Lloyd hit the ground hard, the wind knocked out of him. As he gasped for breath, the Other Father's head thrust through the mirror, glaring down at him.

"You can come back out when you've learned to be a loving son!" he snapped, before disappearing again.

Anger surging through him, Lloyd charged at the wall, only to smack against it hard. He shook his head, hitting the wall with his fist. "Let me out!" he yelled, kicking the wall. Once he was sure there was no point, he let out a ragged sigh, shivering as he looked around.

The room behind the mirror was entirely black, nothing but a metal-framed bed in the corner. No light shone from anywhere, not a window in sight. The rug on the greasy floor was tattered and soaked in places with an unknown fluid. Lloyd pressed himself against the wall, a sob welling up in his throat.

"Wh-where am I…?" he whispered.

"…Hush…"

He froze, gazing around the room.

"And shush…"

"For the Djinn may be listening…"

Lloyd swallowed the sob. "Wh-who's there…?" He followed the soft voices to the bed, where there was a thin blanket draped over a now-glowing lump. Slowly, he lifted the sheet up, jumping back when it revealed three ghosts, all huddled around an enormous, sunken pit of smelly fluid in the mattress. They shied away from his gaze.

"Th-the Djinn? You mean the Other Father?" he murmured. The ghosts looked up, and Lloyd's eyes widened.

They were all children, no older than he was, all with button eyes. One was a cute girl with bobbed dark hair, possibly a couple years younger than himself, but strangely familiar; the second was a boy with a lighter streak in his shoulder-length hair, his clothes in tatters; the last was a taller girl, her hair in a messy bun and lacerations across her face, her mouth open in a soundless scream.

"Who are you?" Lloyd asked, forcing himself to steady his breath.

The ghost boy floated over to him, his mouth unmoving as he spoke. "Don't remember our names…but I remember my real daddy…"

Trying to hold his hand for comfort, Lloyd's fingers passed right through, goosebumps rising on his skin. "Why are you all here?"

"The Djinn," they answered in unison.

They whirled slowly into the air in a macabre dance, speaking softly as they did so. "He spied on our lives, through the little doll's eyes…" the cute ghost girl breathed.

"And saw that we weren't happy," said the ghost boy, slouching.

"So he lured us away, with treasures and treats," explained the tall ghost girl.

"And games to play!" added the cute ghost girl.

"But we still wanted more…" the ghost boy sighed, floating down as he held the cute ghost girl's hand. The tall ghost girl faced Lloyd, her button eyes glowing as she flew towards Lloyd.

"So we let him sew the buttons." He gasped as she passed right through him, his vision filled with nothing but a neon blue glow for a brief moment before blinking it away. He spun around to see the ghosts standing against the wall.

They began floating back to the bed together. "He said that he loved us…" the ghost boy sobbed.

"But he locked us in here…" the cute ghost girl whimpered.

They finished in unison. " _And ate up our lives…_ " They fell back against the mattress, the sheet pulling itself over them, hiding them from view.

Lloyd stood at the end of the bed, stunned. He wasn't the first child that the Other Father took in? _I'm gonna suffer the same thing they did…_ he thought in horror, staring back at the wall. He shook his head free of those dark thoughts, trying to steady himself by holding onto the end of the bed. He wandered over to the wall where the mirror should have been.

"Well…he isn't gonna keep me in the dark forever," he finally said. "Not if he wants to win my life. Beating him is my only chance." He turned, and the ghost children appeared behind him again, but he wasn't afraid, not now that he knew they wouldn't hurt him.

The cute ghost girl spoke hopefully to him, hovering close. "Perhaps, if you do win your escape, you could find our eyes?"

Lloyd's heart ached upon hearing that. "He's taken those, too?" He thought their button eyes were simply a result of being dead in the Other World.

She nodded, covering one eye with her hand. "Yes. And hidden them."

"Find our eyes, mister!" the ghost boy pleaded. "If you do, our souls will finally be freed!"

The weight of the request sat heavily on Lloyd's shoulders, but he nodded. "I-I'll try. For all of you, I'll try."

The ghosts pulsed with hope, and Lloyd sat down against the wall, smiling softly at them. For once, he wasn't alone in his journey.

Suddenly, two gloves hands appeared in the corners of Lloyd's eyes, and he could only just barely process they were coming from behind him when he was pulled through the wall, his mouth covered.

Lloyd was back in the house, but his eyes were wide and his heart pounded as he fought against his captor, struggling in their hold. Finding his footing, he slammed his captor against the wall, grabbing their hand and flipping them onto the ground. An oven mitt was covering their face, and Lloyd swiftly took it off, gasping as they quickly covered their face.

"Kai?!" he panted, taking his hands. Other Kai looked up at him, the corners of his mouth stitched up painfully into a permanent ear-to-ear smile, which he was clearly fighting against. Lloyd's eyes welled up with sympathetic tears. "Did he do this to you…?"

Nervously, Other Kai nodded. Wiping away the tears, Lloyd untied the knots holding his mouth up, pulling out the threads. "I hope that feels bet-"

Other Kai stopped him with a finger to his lips, pointing up at the ceiling. Realizing what he meant, Lloyd nodded, biting his lip. Other Kai took his hand, and they quietly hurried down the hall, where Lloyd noticed the door to the parlour was still open.

Rushing into the room, the bug furniture now asleep in the darkness, Lloyd and Other Kai went to the bug armoire hiding the door. With all their might, they pushed it over, but were unable to prevent the loud crash it caused.

Almost immediately, a voice called out from upstairs. "Lloyd?" the Other Father shouted. "Is that you?!"

Lloyd grabbed Other Kai's hand. "Let's go!" He pulled open the little door, only to find that the tunnel leading back to the real world was now filled with cobwebs. To his horror, shoes and shreds of clothing also filled the darkened tunnel, and he didn't want to even imagine who they belonged to.

The tunnel quivered as the Other Father yelled again. "Lloyd!"

Desperately, Lloyd grabbed Other Kai's arm. "Come with me! He'll just hurt you again!"

Frowning sadly, he shook his head, pulling his arm from Lloyd's grasp. He pulled off his glove, only to reveal his hand was made of sawdust. He blew away his fingers, and Lloyd gulped.

Heavy footsteps sounded down the stairs. "Lloyd?! How dare you disobey your father!" Other Garmadon roared, his voice growing closer.

With one last look of regret, Other Kai shoved Lloyd into the tunnel, shutting the door behind him. Fighting back the tears in his eyes, Lloyd hunched down low, and hurried through the tunnel as quickly as he could, swiping away at the cobwebs in his face. The tunnel trembled and quaked around him as the Other Father came down the steps and closer to the parlour, Lloyd's heart thundering in his chest in time with the tunnel.

"LLOYD!"

Soon, he was finally at the other end, and he burst through the door, his hair filled with dust and broken cobwebs. He slammed the little door shut, turning the key as quickly as he could to lock it. Standing up, his voice filled with relief and joy as he shouted for the world to hear.

"I'm hoooooome!"

* * *

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	12. Chapter 12

Silence answered Lloyd's call, his voice echoing throughout the house. His chest heaved as he gasped for breath, his heart still thumping loudly from his race back to the real world. He forced his smile not to falter, running to the hallway.

"Real Dad?" he called, looking around. Noticing the door to his mother's study was still open, he peered in. "Real Mom?" He received no response, but continued to yell, walking over to the staircase. "Hello?! Hello, hello! Anyone here?!"

Still nothing. He gulped, but then a surge of hope flared in his chest. "Dad went food shopping!" he remembered out loud, racing to the kitchen. Sure enough, there were two large bags on the table, filled to the brim with food. Lloyd happily peered into one, but reeled back in disgust, the bag tipping onto its side.

Rotten apples and oranges rolled out of the bag, fruit flies buzzing out and maggots crawling onto the table. He brought his hands to his mouth. "That's…disgusting."

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Lloyd excitedly ran to the door, swinging the door open and throwing his arms around the person at the door. "I'm so happy you guys are back! You'll never believe…" He trailed off as he realized the person was close to his own height. Lloyd pulled away, and frowned.

Kai stared back at him, his eyes narrowed and his brow furrowed.

"Oh… It's the Kai that talks," Lloyd remarked dryly.

"What?" Kai shook his head. "Never mind. Uh, listen Floyd, would you happen to still have that doll I gave you?"

Lloyd stiffened at the mention of it. _The doll… Of course! The button eyes…it all makes sense! That must be how the Other Father found out about me!_ Then, he sucked in a breath. _What if that's how he found the other children…?_

Kai continued to talk. "W-well, see, my grandpa's really mad about it. Turns out it was my sister's, and she had before, y'know, before she disappeared?"

Looking over him, Lloyd connected the dots. "You stole that doll, didn't you?!"

"B-but it looked just like you!" Kai insisted, his face red with embarrassment. "I couldn't help it!"

Speaking his theories out loud, Lloyd rushed through his words, "It used to look like…this little girl with cuts all over her face, and then this…I dunno, goth kid with a streak in his hair, then another girl with super short hair and she looked like…" Lloyd stopped, then gave Kai a once-over. "Your sister… She looked a lot like you, right? But with a bobbed haircut?"

Kai looked up in thought, scratching the back of his neck, before he answered, "Yeah, why?"

Lloyd grabbed his hand, dragging him inside. "I think I just met her! Come on!"

Reluctantly, Kai followed, and Lloyd couldn't tell whether he was happy to hear that he'd seen his sister, or worried that he was in his grandpa's old house that he was never supposed to enter.

"L-listen, I'm not supposed to be here, but if you've really met my sister, couldn't you bring her here?" Kai asked. Lloyd wanted to answer, but figured it would be better to wait until later.

He brought Kai to the parlour, pointing at the little door. "She's in there."

Raising an eyebrow, Kai crouched down and reached for the key. "Can't you unlock it? She's probably cramped—"

Lloyd interrupted him by grabbing his wrist. "Not in a million years. But it won't matter! She can't see without her eyes!" Softly, he added, "None of the ghosts can."

Kai immediately stood up. "What do you mean? What happened to her eyes? And what's this about ghosts?" He groaned, waving as if to brush away the thought. "Then, what about the doll? Where is it?"

"Perfect idea! I'd love to get rid of it." Lloyd led him upstairs, and could feel him quickly following behind him, nearly getting his heels stepped on.

Lloyd kicked open the door to his bedroom, looking around. "Where are you hiding, you little monster?!" he hissed, looking under his bed and on his chair, not finding anything.

Kai stood in the doorway, almost looking concerned for him. "Uh… Have you and Nya been talking? Or maybe you and Wu?"

"The doll is his spy!" Lloyd snapped. "That's how he spies on you! He finds out what's wrong with your life!"

"The doll is…Wu's spy?" asked Kai, looking at him.

"No, you idiot! The Other Father! He's made this entire magical world, where everything is better; the food, the writing garden…" He turned to glare at Kai. "The neighbours. But it's all a trap! And your sister was caught! The Other Father has her and all the other kids locked up in some room, and he ate their souls!"

As Lloyd rambled, he didn't notice Kai's fists balling up at his sides. "Excuse me?"

"There was another Kai there, but he couldn't speak! Since she's your sister, he was probably the same you in her world, or something like that! He tried to warn her, but she didn't listen! She had buttons sewn in, and she died there! And—"

Lloyd was immediately cut off by Kai pushing him against the wall, pain blossoming along his back as he cried out. "K-Kai, what the heck?!"

"Is that all my sister is to you?" he spat, his eyes dark as flint. "Just some fun ghost story to tell to people? Just a legend or something related to some stupid other world? Not an actual person, my own sister, who I lost?!"

"N-no, Kai I swear, I'm telling the truth!" Lloyd insisted. Kai was having none of it, and shoved Lloyd to the floor.

"I should've known better than to tell you about her!" he yelled, his jaw clenched. "I should've known you would just make her into a little bedtime story! I know she's still out there, Lloyd! And if you're not gonna believe me, I'll just go back and tell Wu you lost the doll. Just like you've lost your mind!"

As Kai stormed out and down the stairs, Lloyd scrambled to his feet, hurrying after him. "You're not listening to me! Just ask the falcon! He'll tell you everything!"

Kai turned to glare over his shoulder at him. "He's not a parrot, you freak! I don't care what else you have to say; I'm leaving!" His pace quickened, and Lloyd desperately chased after him as he sped out of the house.

"Please, Kai! Listen to me! I promise I'm telling the truth!" Lloyd shouted, grabbing the sleeve of his jacket.

His only response was Kai ripping his arm out of Lloyd's grasp, making him stumble off the porch. "Shut up! You're insane!" He ran the rest of the way to his own house, not looking back.

Lloyd gritted his teeth, finally fed up with Kai's aggression. " _I'm_ insane? You're the jerk that gave me the doll in the first place!" he screamed after him. Hot tears burned at the corners of his eyes, and he sniffed, angrily wiping them away with his shirtsleeve. He was out of breath again, slouching over as he fought for breath.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a car in the driveway. A grin made its way back onto his face. "Mom! Dad!"

He ran to the car, hopping over a fallen log in his way, then skidding to a halt beside the passenger door. Peering inside, he saw no one, but noticed his father's cellphone in the front seat.

Lloyd pulled the door open, picking his phone up and dialling his mother's number. He held it up to his ear. "Please, pick it up, mom, please…" he whispered to himself, crossing his fingers.

Misako's voice sounded on the other end. "Hello!"

"Mom! I—"

"I can't answer the phone at the moment, but I'll be sure to get back to you as soon as I can!" The phone beeped for him to leave a message, but Lloyd dejectedly looked at it, pressing the end call button.

"Where did you guys go…?" he muttered, slouching in the seat. A soft drizzle began outside, the raindrops pattering on the car window. He stared out into the forest, remembering the weather from when he'd gone to the wishing well.

His eyes widened, and he popped open the glove compartment, digging through it and pulling out two quarters. "This has to work. It worked last time!"

Lloyd raced down the path, slipping once in the mud, but not letting it deter him. The rain grew heavier as he ran, but he blinked away the raindrops — or were they tears? — as he ran past the cherry trees and towards the well.

He made it to the same mushroom-surrounded wishing well in what seemed like record time. Sliding down to his knees, feeling the cold of the mud seeping through his pants, Lloyd pushed the quarters through the little hole in the wooden door.

"I-I take back everything I said before," he whispered, his teeth chattering. "I don't want to stay in the Other World! It's better here! It's safe! I just wanted my old life back, that's all! I didn't want my parents to go away forever… I didn't want any of this to happen, I swear!" His thoughts and speech grew more frantic with the rain, but he didn't care that he was being soaked to the bone.

"I'm sorry… I just want things to go back to normal! I wish… I wish all this Other World nonsense would go away… I wish I could have my life back, I…" He hiccuped, the raindrops mingling with the tears running down his cheeks. "I-I just…I just w-want my mommy and daddy back…"

Thunder rumbled in the distance as Lloyd curled up on the ground, sobbing for no one to hear.

* * *

 **And this is what I meant when I said I was going to also take some liberties with the AU. What do you think?**

 **Please review, I love reading what you all think :3**

 **Stay tuned!**


	13. Chapter 13

"I don't know what possessed you to come out here, Floyd," Jay muttered as he wrapped a towel around Lloyd's shoulders, holding an umbrella over them both. "It's too cold and wet for anyone, much less yourself! What would your parents think?"

Lloyd simply shrugged, his eyelids feeling heavy, hardly even registering the feeling of the towel on himself. Jay had somehow found him by the well — he probably noticed that the door was left open — and insisted on bringing him back to his and Cole's loft. It didn't matter to Lloyd; as long as he was with someone who wanted to talk to him, he would probably be fine.

As they walked back down the path, Jay kept his arm around Lloyd. "Where are your parents, anyway? I need to give them a serious talk about letting you just run out here on your own."

"I'm fourteen, I'll be fine," Lloyd said flatly. "But I don't know where they are. They're missing."

Jay looked down at him, his eye wide. "Missing? Where did they go?"

"Dunno. But…can you help me find them?"

Sighing, Jay nodded. "I don't know how much help Cole and I can be, but we'll do our best. Looks like we'll have to cancel our theatre plans tonight, though…"

Once they arrived at the door, Jay took the towel and vigorously dried Lloyd off, making him certain he'd never be wet again in his life. He took his shoes off at the door, not even looking at Bruiser as the dog happily greeted him, poking his hand with his nose.

"Cole!" Jay called. "Get me some nice passion flower tea!"

Lloyd heard a groan from the kitchen. "You need more tea again? But we're supposed to leave now! They won't put the show on hold for us, you know!"

"Change of plans!" Jay led Lloyd to the couch, laying a clean towel under him so he could sit. "And put some soup on the stove while you're at it!"

He groaned again, and stomped out of the kitchen. He was all dressed up in a black tuxedo, the dress shirt underneath seeming quite ill-fitted for him. "You can't just order me around like your—" His gaze softened when he saw Lloyd, his shoulders relaxing. "What happened? Why's Floyd all wet?"

"He was outside, at the well. He says his parents have gone missing."

Sighing, Cole walked over, patting Lloyd's shoulder. "I'm sorry to hear that…" Then, he bent down, picking Geode up and placing the cat into his lap. "Here, hold Geode. They say cats are wonderful for making people feel better."

Jay rolled his eyes, and went over to his mannequins, adjusting the feathers and sequins. "Sure, if you also want scratches and bites with your so-called 'affection'. Meanwhile, dogs will never willingly hurt you!" He stroked the top of Bruiser's head, who wagged his tail in response.

"Oh yeah? Bruiser nearly broke my knee when I took him out for a walk last month!" Cole retorted. "At least cats won't hurt you if they so much as run into you!"

Before they could continue arguing, Lloyd loudly cleared his throat, folding his arms across his chest. They stopped, looking over at him, as Geode settled himself into his lap.

"Right… Your missing parents," Jay said, nodding. Sighing in frustration, Cole went back to the kitchen, where Lloyd could hear a tea kettle whistling. "Good thing Cole and I know exactly what you need."

Lloyd sighed, petting Geode's back. "I don't think I really need tea or soup…"

Jay laughed. "Of course you do! You need to be warmed up from the inside out, Lloyd. Tea and soup are the best remedy for that." He nodded to Cole, who had come out of the kitchen carrying a tray with a teacup and a bowl of miso soup.

"Thanks…" he mumbled as Cole placed it on the coffee table in front of him. He slowly ate the soup — which was still piping hot — as Cole and Jay took a seat in the chairs across from him. "Where'd you guys have to go, anyway?"

"A musical, of course!" replied Jay with a grin. "One, in particular, that Cole and I performed in a long time ago."

Cole rolled his eyes, leaning back in his chair. "Which we now can't see…" He straightened up when Jay shot him a glare. "Thankfully, though, it'll be going until next week, so we have lots of time to see it again."

Lloyd ate the rest of his soup, trying not to focus on the fact that it was his least favourite kind, and looked over at his tea. It had cooled down quite a bit, and Cole had taken the tea bag out when he wasn't looking, and was already looking through a cabinet. "Are you gonna want to read my tea leaves again, or…?"

Jay shook his head. "We have something different in mind." He turned to Cole. "Cole, get the- Oh, yes, right." Noticing that he was carrying a dish of saltwater taffy, Lloyd frowned.

"How is hundred-year-old candy gonna help me?" he asked as it was placed on the coffee table. He sipped his tea, and looked up in alarm as he heard Jay give a shout, raising a pair of knitting needles.

Lloyd screamed in shock, flinching away and trying not to spill his tea all over the couch at the same time. However, he felt nothing but sticky pellets of candy hitting his cheek. Opening one eye, he peeked over, and saw that Jay was instead stabbing at the candy bowl, the rock-hard taffy soon becoming nothing but sugary rubble. Once Jay was done, Cole leaned over and blew away the dust, revealing a three-sided green candy with a hole in it.

Jay plucked it out with the needles, using them like chopsticks to put it in Lloyd's hand. "There you go."

He raised an eyebrow, drinking the rest of his tea and putting the cup down, looking through the hole at the men. "What's it for?"

"It could help," replied Jay with a shrug. "They're good for bad things, sometimes."

Cole groaned, shaking his head. "No, they're good for lost things."

Lloyd looked around the room with the candy up to his eye, sighing when he saw that nothing looked different from before. He put it into his pocket, gently moving Geode from his lap so he could stand up.

"No, Cole, it's bad things," Jay insisted.

"Lost things, Jay," Cole responded, picking Geode up. Lloyd groaned, and simply left the apartment as the couple bickered, leaving the towel Jay had given him on the coatrack.

"Bad things!"

"Lost things."

"Bad!"

"Lost."

"Bad."

"Lost."

"Bad."

"Lost!"

Lloyd shut the door behind him, sighing, the rain still pouring down. Maybe one day those two would stop having petty arguments, but he doubted it would be anytime soon. He wondered if it was some kind of side effect of being married, that couples would just argue about everything because they always knew they still loved each other in the end.

 _I've argued with Mom and Dad a lot since we moved here,_ he thought sadly. _Do they still love me, even after how I've been acting._ He swallowed thickly, his eyes too dry to make any more tears, as he wondered if they left because of him.

"Floyd!" a voice yelled over the rain. Lloyd looked up at the sound of what was almost his name, and saw Zane waving to him from the top of his balcony. Lloyd trudged over to the stairs, only for the eccentric snake charmer to meet him halfway. "What are you doing out here? You could catch cold!"

Lloyd shrugged. "Just looking for my parents. Can't find them." His throat hurt too much for him to make longer sentences; if he spoke anymore, he'd start crying again.

Zane sighed, shaking his head. "I was hoping the snakes were just spouting nonsense again, but…"

He looked up, eyebrows raised. "They told you my parents went missing?"

"Something like that. They told me if you returned, then your parents wouldn't."

Lloyd gripped the handrail desperately. "I should've listened to them. If I did, then none of this would've happened! The buttons, the ghost children, my parents…"

Zane looked over him in concern, patting his shoulder, just like Cole did. "I am not sure what you're talking about, exactly… But if it would help, I want to give you this."

"If it's another artichoke, then I—" He stopped when he saw Zane held out a small silver bell, snake designs engraved on its surface. Lloyd took it, turning it over in his hand. "What is this?"

"I use it sometimes when training my snakes," Zane said with a smile. "Perhaps it could help you with finding your parents? If you ring the bell, maybe you'll find them."

Sighing, Lloyd faked a smile. "Thanks, Mr. Julien."

The snake charmer turned back up the steps, heading for his door. "My pleasure, Floyd. And like I said, you can just call me Zane!"

~o~o~o~o~

The rain continued even into the night. Lloyd found himself in his parents' room, clutching his stuffed puppy to his chest. He almost seemed to have déjà vu of when he was younger, when he would crawl into their bed whenever a thunderstorm happened. He would nestle between his parents as they gave him goodnight kisses, telling them he was safe, that the storm couldn't hurt him.

That they would always be there for him.

Lloyd pulled back the comforter and sheets, and picked up the pillows. He rearranged them so they vaguely looked like his parents were lying beside him. He wrapped his father's extra neck brace around the pillow father's "neck", and put his mother's spare glasses on the pillow mother's face.

He smiled shakily at them. "Goodnight, Mom," he whispered brokenly, kissing her pillow. Then he turned to his father's pillow, kissing his. "Goodnight, Dad."

Lying down between them, Lloyd held his puppy close to his chest, and he couldn't stop the sob that tore from his throat, the tears that streamed down his cheeks. His eyes stung as he tried to squeeze them shut, hiccuping as he forced back the sobs so he could sleep, pretending his parents were safe at home, that he was little again, that this was just another storm he had to sleep through.

Nothing could keep him from remembering that he was alone, even as sleep finally enveloped him.

~o~o~o~o~

Something feathery tickled Lloyd's nose as he slept less than peacefully. Groaning, Lloyd brushed it off, trying to get back to sleep. It brushed again, more insistently this time, and he forced his eyes open, glaring up sleepily at whatever awoke him.

The falcon was perched on his chest, his beak mere inches away from his nose. He blinked owlishly at Lloyd.

"Hi… How'd you get in here…?" he murmured. He didn't respond, of course, but there must have been some reason for why it would wake him up. Lloyd sat up a little, the falcon hopping onto his lap. "Do…you know where my parents are…?"

He blinked, and Lloyd could have sworn he saw him give a small nod. His wings fluttered, and he flew out of the room. Lloyd quickly got up, stretching to pop his joints, and hurried out of the room after him, still holding his stuffed puppy under his arm.

The falcon led him to the end of the hallway downstairs, where the large mirror was. Raising an eyebrow, Lloyd watched as an image began to form inside it. He gasped when he saw Garmadon and Misako, their eyes wide with fear as they huddled together as green crystals began to surround them.

"Mom… Dad…!" Lloyd whimpered in horror. Garmadon reached a shaky finger out to the slightly fogged glass, writing letters into it, his fingertip squeaking against the glass.

 _HELP US_

Once he finished, the crystals surrounded them in greater numbers, enveloping them, until the last thing Lloyd saw was their fearful faces fading away into green frost. The image was then gone, and Lloyd was left staring at his own horrified expression.

He cried out, and desperately banged his fists against the mirror, as if that would free them. Cracks formed under his strikes to the glass, until the entire mirror shattered, glass showering down around him. He crouched to the ground, holding his head in his hands, shaking.

The falcon fluttered down beside him, affectionately nuzzling his beak against his knee. Lloyd looked over at him. "H-how did this happen…?" he whispered. The falcon took off down the hall again, and Lloyd followed close behind.

He led him back to his parents' room, where he ducked under the bed. Lloyd watched as he pulled something out, and dropped his puppy in shock as he saw it was the doll, but different this time. He picked it up. On one side was Garmadon, and on the other was Misako, both with button eyes, both with sad frowns sewn on their faces.

"The Other Father… He's taken them!" Lloyd realized out loud. He threw the doll onto the floor with a glare, angrier tears now burning the corners of his eyes.

* * *

 **I got sick. That's about all I can say XD**

 **But honestly everyone's reviews have helped me keep going, so thank you very much :3**

 **Stay tuned!**


	14. Chapter 14

Lloyd crouched in front of the lit fireplace, watching as the doll ignited. Its limbs curled grotesquely, the stitches of its mouth burning away so it gaped open. The sawdust inside was lit only for a brief moment until it, too, burned away. The falcon was perched on the edge of the coffee table, his eyes unblinking.

Despite the warmth from the fire, Lloyd still found himself shivering. He looked over at one of the boxes beside the coffee table, reaching inside and pulling out an old photo album. Sighing, he flipped through the pages.

Images of his parents at his birthday parties with him were everywhere, bright smiles on everyone's faces, as if they didn't have a care in the world. He swallowed thickly, wishing that for even one moment he could be back in those times, not alone and afraid of some supernatural being. It was only once he reached the middle of the photo album that the photos grew scarcer, less time for pictures with family and friends.

He managed to flip the pages all the way back to the beginning, tracing the photo in the centre with his finger. In a hospital bed was a tiny baby, barely the size of the stuffed puppy he was lying beside, his mouth wide open in a soundless wail. The words " _Our little miracle_ " were written beneath it.

Lloyd closed the photo album, no more tears building up in his eyes; he'd cried all that he could. As the fire died out, he looked up at the bronze teapot on the mantle, standing up and lifting it. He cradled it in his hands, dusting off the little phoenix symbol on the side.

"They're not coming back, are they?" Lloyd asked, not looking up. "Mom and Dad?" His grip on the teapot tightened. "Not on their own, anyway." He narrowed his eyes, straightening up as he gazed at the falcon. "I know what I have to do."

Going up to his bedroom, Lloyd got himself ready. He put his old green jacket over his pyjamas, and picked up a satchel he was planning on using for school. Putting on his rain boots, he went downstairs.

He grabbed the garden shears by the door, and took his hat off the coatrack. Lloyd pulled open one of the drawers in the cabinet, taking out a candle and a box of matches. Thinking he was prepared enough, he set off towards the parlour.

He didn't make it far before he remembered the candy and the bell that his neighbours had given him. Running back upstairs, he dug through the pocket of his jeans, which he left on the floor the previous night.

Lloyd turned the objects over in his hand. Hesitating, he put them both in his satchel, hoping they would come in handy.

Returning to the parlour, the falcon waiting patiently in the same spot on the table, Lloyd crouched down to the little door. Unlocking and opening the door, he lit the candle and held it in front of him as he began to crawl through, leaving the key behind in the lock.

The tunnel felt different this time. It wasn't soft and silky anymore, but more like dry skin, completely lifeless beneath him. The walls around him had gone brown, no light shining, like he was truly crawling through a rotting, dying creature. Trying not to gag at the thought, he continued on, holding the candle out far so he could see where he was going.

Soon, the falcon spoke, his voice returned, "You know…you're walking right into his trap."

"I can't leave my parents behind," Lloyd insisted. "I have to go back…for them. I'm the only one who can save them."

"In that case… Challenge him," the falcon said. "He won't play fair, but he won't refuse, either. He has a thing for games."

Lloyd thought back to the first time he went to the Other World, when the Other Father wanted to play a game with him. He nodded. "Okay."

Suddenly, the door at the end of the tunnel clicked open, a cool breeze wafting through. The candle blew out, the falcon disappearing into the darkness. Lloyd squinted, trying to get his eyes to adjust, when he saw a figure appear at the end.

"Lloyd?" The voice of his concerned father rang clear through the tunnel.

"Dad?" He squinted more, and gasped as he saw it was indeed his real father, the neck brace recognizable anywhere.

"Lloyd! You came back for us!"

Smiling brightly, Lloyd dropped the candle and ran the rest of the way. He emerged through the other end, and immediately wrapped his arms around his father in a tight hug.

"My son… Why would you run away from me?" Lloyd's eyes widened in alarm as he heard his voice shift, and looked over his shoulder in time to see Garmadon's hand suddenly blacken and grow.

Lloyd shoved the Other Father away, watching with fear as he grew back into his true form, his skin turning pitch black and his red button eyes bursting out of what should have been his real eyes. Grinning, he ripped off the neck brace, throwing it to the side. The parlour brightened to an eerie purple, the bug furniture coming back to life.

Glaring, Lloyd forced his fear away. "Where'd you put my real parents?"

The Other Father's eyes glimmered mischievously. "Goodness, I have no idea. Perhaps they've grown bored of you and run off to a nice vacation spot?" He smiled again, his teeth bright against his skin.

Lloyd didn't back down, defiantly stepping forward. "They weren't bored of me, you stole them!"

"Oh, don't be so difficult, Lloyd," Other Garmadon chastised, wagging a finger in his face. "Wasn't that why you came here in the first place? Perhaps you should have a seat, so we can talk about it." He looked over Lloyd, giving a quick nod.

Before he could react, Lloyd felt two hands gripping his arms, and he turned to see Other Misako, her face and hands more wrinkled than it was in the real world, a hissing wheeze passing through her lips. Her skin had paled to paper-white, as if she, too, were an origami creation from her garden. She led him towards a bug-shaped armchair, sitting him down as the bug-leg armrests secured him into it.

The Other Father kneeled in front of the little door, and clapped his hands. After a brief moment, an enormous snake slithered out of the tunnel, a key clasped between its jaws. Lloyd sank in the chair. _I should've taken it with me…_

Smiling tauntingly over at Lloyd, the Other Father shut the door and locked it. The beetle armoire assumed a guard position in front of the door, and Other Garmadon lifted the key above his head. Tilting his head back, he dropped it into his open mouth, swallowing it.

"Don't you have your own key?" Lloyd spat.

Other Misako shook her head, shuffling so she was in front of him. "Only one key…" she rasped, her voice weak.

The Other Father shook his head, reaching over and crumpling Other Misako's lips like scrap paper, silencing her. "Hush, my dear. Don't you think you should be out in your garden?"

He dragged her away by the hand as she nodded slowly in response, the only noise from her being the hiss that Lloyd heard before.

Once he was alone, the bug arm chair released him, and he stood up, holding his satchel close. A soft squeaking sounded from somewhere in the room, like the one he'd heard from the mirror. Lloyd looked around, searching for any sign of his hidden parents.

"Mom? Dad? Where'd he hide you?" he whispered.

The door leading to the backyard slammed, and Lloyd heard the Other Father call from the kitchen, "Breakfast time!" Stiffening, Lloyd went to the kitchen, the smell of bacon and eggs no longer so enticing.

He paused in the doorway, the sight of the Other Father in an apron comical, despite of his situation. Lloyd took a deep breath. _Be strong,_ he thought to himself, before he took his seat at the table, his back to the kitchen sink.

Lloyd could smell cinnamon buns baking in the oven, the bacon and omelette sizzling in pans on the stove. At the centre of the table, rather than the usual bowl of fruit, was the box with his button eyes, needle, and thread. He gulped, feeling a bead of sweat roll down his forehead. He quickly wiped it away.

"How about…we play a game?" Lloyd asked as casually as he could. "I know how much you like them."

"Everybody likes games," said the Other Father matter-of-factly, not turning around.

"Yup."

Other Garmadon flipped the bacon in the pan. "What kind of game would it be?"

Lloyd thought quickly. "A… An exploring game. A finding things game." He saw the Other Father shift somewhat, his fingers drumming on the counter, his sharp nails clicking.

"And what exactly is it that you'd be finding, Lloyd?"

He hesitated, thinking of what he wanted the most. "My real parents."

The Other Father laughed. "Far too easy." He folded the omelette in the pan.

"And," Lloyd added quickly, "and the eyes of the ghost children. You remember them, don't you?"

"Huh." Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but Lloyd thought he almost sounded interested. He placed the omelette and bacon on a plate, placing it in front of him. He grinned at Lloyd. "What if you _don't_ find them?"

 _Of course he'd think of that first_. Lloyd didn't have to think for too long; he knew just what the Other Father wanted. "If I lose, I'll stay here in this world forever, and let you love me." Looking over at the box, he sighed. "And I'll let you sew buttons into my eyes."

Nodding, Other Garmadon folded his arms across his chest, smirking. "And if you somehow win this game?"

"Then you let me go," Lloyd said firmly. "You let everyone go. My real parents, the dead children, _everyone_ you trapped here."

Grinning maliciously, the Other Father extended his hand. "Deal."

Lloyd narrowed his eyes at him, not moving. "Not until you give me a clue."

The Other Father snorted, his expression souring as his fingers curled into a fist. "Oh. Right." He stood behind Lloyd, and spoke as if he were talking to a small child, making gestures in front of his eyes with his hands, "In each of three wonders I've made just for you, a ghost's eye is lost in plain sight."

Nodding, Lloyd turned around to face him. "And for my parents?"

Other Garmadon chuckled, and leaned back against the sink, tapping his button eye with a fingernail as he smiled wickedly, his mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.

Lloyd shrugged, turning away, the tapping still sounding behind him. "Fine. Don't tell me." He groaned, and turned back around, extending his hand. "It's a deal—" He gasped quietly, seeing that the Other Father had disappeared, and the tapping sound was just water droplets from the faucet hitting the sink.

He stood up, staring at the dripping faucet. "What does he mean by that?" he murmured to himself. "Wonders…?"

Through the window, a soft golden light shone from afar. Lloyd looked up, and saw that the writing garden had lit up. He furrowed his brows, and nodded to himself.

"Let the game begin."

* * *

 **AND SO THE REAL FUN BEGINS**

 **Please leave a review, and stay tuned!**


	15. Chapter 15

As Lloyd approached the garden, the golden glow of the buttercups dimmed, until they were only a sickly mustard colour. He pushed open the iron gate, making a loud metallic screech that he had to shield his ears from. Ivy sprawled along the arch, hanging down above his head like nooses. He took a deep breath, and made his way along the stone steps.

The light of the moon was no longer shining down on him, the only light coming from the eerie glow of the origami flowers around him. Other than that, the garden had been utterly drained of any life it may have once had. Looking closer, he could see that the petals and leaves all had tears in them, as if they were beginning to rot and fall apart. The rows of bleeding hearts along the walls quivered, before sticky red liquid seeped out from their petals, their glow dimming until there was no light at all.

Lloyd gulped. _Don't let it get to you,_ he thought, tightly gripping the strap of his satchel. _That's what the Other Father wants._

The cherry blossoms of the trees had all rotted away, leaving behind claw-shaped branches that raked at the starless sky. There was no more aromatic scent of fresh flowers in the air, instead a stale odour that hung in the air lifelessly.

He soon reached the stone wall where he'd first seen his Other Mother writing, but as he looked out at the garden, he saw nothing but the flowers wilting and rotting away.

Suddenly, the snapdragons that played with him on his first visit began nipping at his ankles again. Not in the mood for their games, Lloyd angrily stamped on them, crushing the flowers under his shoes.

As he stomped on the last one, however, he failed to notice the stone wall opening up like a giant mouth, even bigger snapdragons snarling and creeping out. He screamed as they grabbed him by the legs, yanking him down, making him drop his bag.

The stems of the snapdragons wrapped around him tightly, and he watched in horror as they began to drag him towards the stone mouth. Lloyd squirmed, and managed to free one arm. Catching sight of the shears glinting in the dim light, he reached out as best as he could, forcing himself to crawl against the dragging of the snapdragons.

The second he was able to grab the handles, he cut away at the heads of the flowers one by one, pulling himself free of the stems. They lifelessly slithered back into the stone mouth, which closed once more, as if it had never been open in the first place.

Panting, Lloyd turned to pick his bag back up, only for the origami hummingbirds to snatch it out of his hands. "Hey!" he snapped, grabbing the strap and pulling against them. Their wings were beating so loudly they sounded like the buzzing of hornets, their needle-like beaks stabbing tiny holes into the fabric.

One had managed to get into the bag, and had brought out the three-sided candy, holding it by the hole in the centre on its beak. The other hummingbirds buzzed around it, and they began to fly off with it.

"Give that back!" Lloyd spat. Thinking quickly, he took off his fedora, and threw it like a frisbee at the birds. With an unceremonious screech as they were hit, the hummingbirds dropped the candy, and flew off in confusion. Throwing his bag over his shoulder, Lloyd ran over to where they dropped it, picking it up. He turned it over in his hand.

"But why steal this…?" he wondered out loud. Shrugging, he held it back up to his eye, and gasped. Through the eyehole, the Other World had changed. The scenery was black and white, like a children's colouring book, but with no definitive outlines of anything.

Furrowing his brow, Lloyd looked around the garden, until he saw a small, glowing green orb. He grinned. "It's a ghost eye…" he whispered, and began to step forward.

The ground underneath him crinkled suddenly, like he was walking on paper. Lloyd looked down, and saw something written in black ink on the parchment paper ground.

 _I never wanted to hurt you_

 _But he made me_

An enormous metal claw swung down in front of Lloyd, tearing the message apart. He shrieked, falling onto his backside, and looked up. Other Misako's praying mantis contraption was back, but it was much different from before. The ghost eye was now the knob of the shift lever. The mantis' eyes were blindingly bright, and his Other Mother was at the helm, her hands in the gloves that forced her to write. She was now thin as a sheet of paper, her mouth still a crumpled mess.

" _Sooooorrryyyyyyyyy_ ," she moaned, her gloved hands dragging her around to flip various switches. " _Father making meeeee…_ "

Lloyd had no time to wonder how she could still speak. The claws swung down again, and Lloyd scrambled to his feet, jumping out of the way. "Y-you don't have to do this!" he called, hoping that she had some mind of her own. "Isn't your goal to make me happy?!"

In response, Other Misako's gloves took to writing on the endless scroll. Lloyd took that as a chance to try and run, but found the ground caving beneath him. Gasping, the paper floor began to swallow him up, and he scrabbled at the ground around him to try and pull himself back up. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the claw of the praying mantis raising again. He raised his arms, covering his face and bracing for the worst.

Suddenly, something wrapped around his wrist, and he was yanked out of the hole and tossed onto the ground. His head spinning, he watched a red string slithering back to the contraption, and noticing one of the gloved hands yanking harshly on the Other Misako's paper braid.

He smiled hopefully. _She's still in there somewhere!_

" _Don't wannaaaaaa hurt youuuuuu!_ " she cried once the hand released her hair. Lloyd got back up, and ran towards one of the bridges spanning the pond as the mantis began to advance on him again.

Lloyd backed up, not wanting to take his eyes off what could possibly kill him if he so much as blinked. As he watched Other Misako, he could see her pulling against the gloves, tears starting to show in her arms.

"Careful!" he yelled, jumping away as a claw swung down, striking the bridge. "Fight it!"

The claws kept swinging, ripping apart the bridge as it kept coming for him. Lloyd could see that the mantis was heading for a hole it created, but didn't know whether to warn Other Misako, or let her go down with it. Before he could decide, the mantis contraption fell into the hole, beginning to sink towards the black waters below.

With newfound strength, Other Misako kicked off one of the mechanical gloves. Her hand now free, she took off the shift knob, holding it out to Lloyd. With that action, the mantis teetered off the edge of the hole, and into the pond. " _Taaaaaake it!_ " she shouted, her body now waist deep in the water.

Lloyd grabbed it from her, and watched as his Other Mother sank into the turkey depths, her paper hand the last thing he saw of her. He gave a shuddering breath. "Thank you…" he whispered, knowing his words would go unheard.

A crackling sound echoed from below, and a grey wave rippled out from where Other Misako had sunk, spreading to the rest of the garden. Soon, the entire landscape was a lifeless grey, which Lloyd found himself liking it better than before.

The ghost eye in his hand glimmered a soft green, and Lloyd looked at it, the face of the ghost boy flickering. " _Bless you, sir! You've found me! But please, find the others…_ "

Nodding, Lloyd put the eye into his bag. "Don't worry. I'm getting the hang of this."

As he left the garden, he heard a grinding sound from somewhere above him. He looked up, and his blood ran cold as he saw something moving slowly in front of the moon, like an eclipse. Gulping, Lloyd carried on towards the house, wondering where he would look next.

Another sound caught his attention, this time what sounded like a music box tune. Lloyd turned his attention to the stairs leading down to Other Jay and Other Cole's theatre. The chaser lights around the door were slower now, some flickering randomly, as if the bulbs were running out of energy.

"I guess I'm going down there next…" Lloyd murmured, walking down the steps towards the door. Taking a breath, he opened it, and pushed through the velvet curtains.

* * *

 **The hardest part about this chapter was deciding how long it was supposed to be. As such, the next chapter will be out sooner, but it will be much shorter than normal. I hope that's a good enough exchange :3**

 **Anyways, please review, and stay tuned!**


	16. Chapter 16

The music stopped as soon as he entered. The theatre was pitch black, and there was no more murmuring audience. Lloyd stepped forward, his foot kicking something. He bent down, and picked up the flashlight at his feet. He turned it on, sweeping the beam of light around.

Eyes glinted in the darkness, and Lloyd squinted. He could just barely make out the shape of a giant wolf-like creature. _Bruiser_ , he realized with a shudder, and aimed the light to another side of the theatre, seeing a jaguar-shaped creature. _And that must be Geode…_ Both of the creatures snarled at him, their teeth bright in the darkness. Stiffening, Lloyd carried on down the aisle.

Though he kept the light out in front of him, he couldn't help but feel as if he was being watched by thousands of eyes. He wanted to believe it was just nerves from being in the same place as the mutated Bruiser and Geode, but something was making his skin crawl all over, the hairs on the back of his neck raising.

 _It's just the dark, Lloyd…_ he reassured himself. _Don't need to be scared of the dark…_

His heart thundered in his chest as he heard a sudden, very slight movement beside him. He spun around, aiming the light at the rows of seats, and held back a scream. The endless rows were still filled with mannequins, but their faces were…wrong.

Their eyes looked like ping-pong balls with painted-on pupils stapled to their faces, and lips only made up of two horizontal, red ovals. They had no noses, no hair, no eyebrows, nothing that made them look like actual people. It was like someone who had never seen a human before had tried to draw one using only vague details. They wore no clothes anymore, but had no other features, their arms and legs too thin and too long. Their skin was white and shiny, like rubber porcelain. They were the most basic a human could be, but everything a human shouldn't look like.

The worst part, in Lloyd's mind, was the fact that they were all lifelessly staring into him. As if he didn't exist, but that he was existing too much. Even ones all the way at the end of the rows could see him, their dead eyes burning into his face.

The mannequin closest to him stretched its body towards him. Lloyd was frozen to the spot as its nearly-featureless face filled his vision, slowly moving a scrawny finger up to its lips.

" _Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh_ …" it hissed, a long, horrible sound that made Lloyd's ears hurt. Swallowing hard, Lloyd nodded quickly. The mannequin sank slowly back into its seat, but still watched him like a hawk.

A completely new sense of dread filled Lloyd as he walked down the rest of the aisle, the mannequins' heads slowly turning to watch him.

Suddenly, a spotlight flashed to life on the stage, making Lloyd jump back. It rested on what looked like a saltwater taffy wrapper, but hanging between the poles on the stage like a cocoon. As uncomfortable as Lloyd already was, he knew he had to keep going forward.

He turned the flashlight off, and kept walking until he was at the edge of the stage, hoisting himself up. He couldn't see anything through the wrapper, until he remembered the candy in his bag.

Lloyd held it up to his eye, and felt his stomach turn as he saw Other Cole and Other Jay curled up together inside the cocoon, their eyes closed and faces expressionless. Then, he saw a pale violet orb, clutched between their rubbery-looking hands.

Gulping, Lloyd put it back in his pocket, and walked up to the cocoon. Holding back his urge to gag, he reached in, feeling around for what he saw. Grabbing what he hoped were their hands, he pulled it out, and shakily smiled in triumph as he held a clasped, cold pair of black and blue taffy hands.

Slowly, Lloyd peeled their sticky fingers apart, until Other Cole and Other Jay's hands unfurled like a blooming flower, a pearl ring in their centre on Other Jay's finger.

"Of course…" Lloyd murmured, reaching for it. "The pearl is the second ghost eye…"

As soon as he touched it, Other Cole and Jay's hands clamped around his, yanking him forward. Lloyd screamed, catching himself before he could fall, his heart nearly stopping as their heads thrusted out of the taffy wrapper.

"THIEF!" Other Jay shrieked, one of his button eyes hanging by a mere thread as he glared hatefully at Lloyd.

"GIVE IT BACK!" Other Cole demanded, his voice thunderously deep, causing the stage to tremble.

Lloyd's thought process was rather muddled at this point, but he could just barely see that Other Cole and Other Jay's bodies were melting together, forcing them into a taffy monster. Their other hand — actually both of their other arms coiled around each other to form one — dragged them forward, the rest of their amalgamated body beginning to show.

Lloyd tried to pull against them, but their furious voices were drowning out any rational thought.

"STOP THIEF! THIEF!"

"GIVE IT BACK! NOT YOURS! OURS!"

He caught sight of the audience out of the corner of his eye. Though they still watched him, they seemed to be leaning forward, as if they were about to leap from their seats. Lloyd's eyes widened.

 _That's it!_ He pulled himself as close to the edge as he could, his grip around the pearl ring strengthening, Other Cole and Other Jay still tugging on his arm and screeching. With all his might, Lloyd threw the flashlight into the crowd, hitting one of the mannequins directly between its bulging eyes.

With that simple action, the mannequins' expressions all changed to that of fury, their oval-shaped lips turning inside out to reveal teeth that looked all too human against their simple faces. They sprang from their seats, charging the stage in anger of the show being ruined.

"THIEF! STOP THIEF!"

"GIVE IT BACK! GIVE IT BACK!"

With the mannequins on the left, and the taffy monster on the right, Lloyd's window to escape was closing quickly. At the last second, he dove out of the way, the mannequins tackling Other Cole and Other Jay, instead of him. His hand now free, Lloyd quickly tugged the pearl off Other Jay's finger, rolling to the other end of the stage.

Soon, the taffy monster and the mannequins froze together, still as stone, as they turned the same lifeless grey as the Other Mother's garden did. The wave of grey rippled out from beneath them, spreading to the stage and the rest of the theatre.

Panting, Lloyd held the ghost eye close to his chest, still in disbelief of what he just did. Then, he felt it pulse in his hand, and he looked down to see it glowing a pale violet, the tall ghost girl's face flashing back at him.

"Please hurry, sir! He's encroaching upon you!" she pleaded.

Lloyd gulped, looking up at the ceiling. "Don't worry…I only have one left to find."

* * *

 **So, as you can tell, this chapter was much shorter than the previous one. But I felt that it messed with the flow of the story too much to have this chapter and the previous chapter together, so I split them.**

 **Stay tuned! (And sweet dreams~)**


	17. Chapter 17

Lloyd closed the door behind him, the chaser lights around it having gone out once he exited. Looking up at the sky, he saw that the moon was already halfway obscured, and he realized with a shudder that the eclipse was being caused by nothing other than a giant button.

Shaking his head to clear his mind, he went up the small staircase, and went around to the stairs leading to the Other Zane's apartment. If the eyes were located in "wonders", then there was no more doubt in his mind that the Other Zane's snake circus was hiding one.

He gazed up the stairs, seeing that the flag waving above his door was shredded at the end. Lloyd forced his fear to the bottom of his stomach, and took a deep breath before he made his way up. As he walked, however, he couldn't help but remember the first time he'd seen the rest of the house, how vibrant and verdant the walls appeared in comparison to the real world, how the lights brought life to the entrance of Other Zane's porch.

Then he remembered that there was never a flag hanging above the door before.

Lloyd raced up the stairs, gasping in horror. It was Other Kai's clothes, hanging limply from the flagpole as if it were a noose.

"Oh, Kai…" he whispered, the corners of his eyes stinging. His hands balled up into fists, and he stormed over to the railing at the edge of the porch, screaming into the endless night. "You evil creep! I'm not scared! Do you hear me?! I'M! NOT! SCARED!"

The door behind him creaked open. Slowly turning, Lloyd narrowed his eyes, and, though he could feel goosebumps creeping up along the nape of his neck, stepped through the doorway with no hesitation. He closed the door behind him, letting the fading moonlight be his guide.

The room was dark, smelling of dust and rotten food, making him wince. The popcorn ferris wheel was completely still, the cannons of cotton candy vacant. Taking a deep breath, Lloyd continued forward, looking around for any sign of the Other Zane.

A rustle sounded behind him. He whipped around, but saw nothing at first. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a gloved hand slipping behind one of the pipes along the ceiling. He readied himself, waiting for something to lunge out at him.

He turned around, and saw the Other Zane weaving himself around the cannons, before he stood up, towering over him. "Hellooooooo, little boy…" he drawled, his hat pulled so low and his collar so high that his face was hidden. Even in the low light, Lloyd could tell he had too many joints in his arms and legs.

His mouth formed a straight, stern line. "I'm Lloyd," he corrected.

The Other Zane extended a limp hand, a little circus ball rolling out of his sleeve and into his palm. "Was this what you were looking fo _r_?"

Not ready to accept it without knowing for certain, Lloyd took the triangle candy out of his pocket, looking through the hole. A soft magenta glowed back at him, and he nodded. "Yeah."

He reached out for it, only for the Other Zane to snatch his hand away. He fell onto his back, scuttling around on all fours around him until he was hidden in the shadows again. "You silly boy… You really think it's a good thing to win this g _am_ e…?"

Frowning, Lloyd held the candy back up to his eye, scanning the darkness. "Of course it is."

"But you'll just go home and be bored and neglec _ted agai_ n…" Lloyd spun around to see that the Other Zane had wrapped himself around a post, spiralling upward until he was hanging off the rafters. "…ssssssame as alway **s**."

Lloyd backed up as he hung by his ankles, swinging back and forth like a hypnotist's pendulum. "Stay with usssss… _W_ e will listen to you… And love youuuuuu…" He suddenly dropped to the ground, then rolled backwards through the circus tent entrance. Biting his lip, Lloyd approached slower as he ducked through the entrance.

His stomach turned as he saw the Other Zane crouched atop a pile of dead rats, which curiously had no flies buzzing around it. He spoke again, his gesturing hands moving as if all of his bones were broken.

"If you s _ssss_ stay… Then you'l _l_ have every **th** ing you cou _ld ever w_ ant… Alwaysss **sss** …"

Lloyd raised the candy to his eye again, and saw the glow from within the Other Zane's hat. He crept closer, slowly putting it back into his pocket. "You really don't get it, do you?"

Other Zane's "head" tilted, and though he couldn't see his face, Lloyd could feel an imploring gaze on him. " **I** don' _t_ under _sssss_ tan _d_ …" Although it could've just been his imagination, Lloyd thought he could see something move under his coat.

"Of course you don't," he muttered, stepping closer. "How could you? You don't have your own thoughts or feelings… You're just a copy the Other Father made of the real Mr. Julien."

A shuddering sigh, before his voice shifted entirely. " **N** _o_ t _ev_ **e** n **t** ** _h_** _at…_ ** _anymore_**."

Biting his lip, Lloyd lunged forward, swiping Other Zane's hat off, then immediately sprang back when he saw what became of him. His entire face was a mass of writhing, flesh-coloured snakes, even his button eyes being made of two coiled vipers. The snakes' bodies forced Other Zane's mouth into a wicked grin, before a purple snake sprang out, the final ghost eye rolling along its body.

Before Lloyd could grab it, thousands of snakes burst from Other Zane's ringmaster uniform, their hissing deafeningly loudly in the tent. Lloyd watched in horror as they formed a squirming blob around the purple snake, shielding the ghost eye from him. He shifted his feet as he tried to find an opening, just big enough for him to grab the eye, but to no avail. If he had half the snake-charming ability that Other Zane had, he would have a chance—

 _Of course!_ Lloyd dug through his satchel, and grabbed the silver bell that Mr. Julien had given him in the real world. He held it by the ribbon tied to it, and rang it as furiously as possible. The snakes squealed loudly in fury, their formation falling apart, but not enough for him. Thinking back to the ghost eye in the theatre, Lloyd threw the bell into the mass of snakes, making them scatter like cockroaches. Immediately, Lloyd grabbed the last ghost eye, and made a run for it.

The snakes were smarter, though. He saw the purple snake slithering quickly in front of him, rearing up and hissing ferociously. When Lloyd flinched, a blue snake twined up his leg and arm, quickly snatching the ghost eye from him, and bouncing it off its tail to the purple leader. Its tail waved in a taunting manner as it slithered out into the darkness, the other snakes following like a scaly ocean. Glaring after them, Lloyd gave chase.

Racing out of the tent, Lloyd heard one of the cannons fire, and a hunk of cotton candy stuck to his face, the snakes around him hissing loudly. He dodged as best as he could, the pink globs still hitting him in the stomach and sides, feeling more like punches each time. He squinted into the darkness, and saw the ghost eye glinting in the fading light.

Something caught his ankle, and he fell onto his face, crying out. He looked down and saw a snake coiling around his legs, more of them swarming around him. He fought against them furiously, but it only seemed to make the snake's grip around him stronger.

His fear won out, and he pulled the garden shears out of his satchel, and, grabbing the snake around his legs by the neck, drove the tip through its head. Sawdust poured out as the snake screeched in agony, giving Lloyd enough time to get back up.

The snake had almost made its way to a swinging pet door leading outside, the ghost eye bouncing along its body. Left with little else to do, Lloyd grabbed the triangle candy out of his pocket, aimed, and threw it as hard as he could like a skipping stone, sending it whistling through the air.

The purple snake had made it outside, the candy flying towards it…

Only for the snake to flatten itself, letting it soar past, missing the ghost eye completely.

"No!" Lloyd gasped, running after it. Two snakes at the door tied their tails together, pulling them tight and tripping him, sending him crashing through the door.

Lloyd cried out as he hit the bannister of the balcony, then looked up in terror at the sound of cracking. The entire balcony was tearing away from the house.

"NO!"

The balcony took the stairs with it, rotating nearly 90 degrees as it collapsed, throwing Lloyd to the front of the house. Breaking wood and screeching metal was all Lloyd could hear as he hit the ground, the world around him spinning.

His body ached, but from what he could tell, he didn't break any bones. Panting heavily, Lloyd shakily sat up, hissing at the movement. He looked down, and saw a large, oozing scrape on his knee. He looked around as his vision cleared. Beyond the topiaries, birch and pine trees, and driveway, he saw nothing. The snake had gotten away.

A breeze on the back of his neck made him shiver, and he looked up. The moon was nearly fully eclipsed by the black button, and Lloyd sat in the remaining sliver of light left.

"Oh no…" he whispered, taking out the two ghost eyes he'd retrieved, cradling them in his hand like injured birds. "… I lost the game. I lost…everything…"

His throat stung, and he let out a sob, tears flooding his eyes. He pulled his knees close to his chest, hugging them tightly as he cried softly, feeling the cold light fading above him. He could feel the Other Father's needles piercing his eyes already, his taunts over failing the ghost children, the Other Kai, his parents…

A grinding sounded above him, and a soft thud sounded in front of him.

Sniffing, Lloyd looked up, and saw the purple snake's beheaded body, and the circus ball-shaped ghost eye. The falcon sat behind it, preening his feathers. The sliver of light had stopped shrinking, the button-eclipse paused.

"I believe I mentioned that I don't like snakes at the best of times," he said, his yellow eyes glinting.

Lloyd chuckled, wiping his eyes. "I-I remember hearing you say something like that."

The falcon bent his head, pushing the ghost eye towards him. "But it looked like you needed this one."

Lloyd picked it up, smiling at him. "Thank you."

The ground turned ashen grey where the ghost eye was, spreading out towards the trees, the driveway, and ultimately engulfing the entire house. Lloyd looked towards the front door, standing up straighter. "I still have to find my parents, though."

The grinding sound from above him resumed, and Lloyd watched as the button covered up the rest of the moon. Then, it began to flake away, like paint chipping off a wall, leaving behind a blank white light. The rest of the sky wasn't safe, peeling and chipping away until nothing but white was left.

Eyes widening, Lloyd watched as the trees unravelled, spiralling into nowhere, the hills beyond dissolving. A sound like thousands, millions, of invisible locusts approaching buzzed closer and closer, filling Lloyd's head. Soon, even the old garden and driveway weren't safe, ripping apart and disappearing into the infinite white light. It became clear to Lloyd that he and the falcon wouldn't be safe for much longer.

He opened his satchel. "Come with me! Hurry!" The falcon flew up, and dove into his bag, just as the ground beneath it tore away. Lloyd ran up to the porch, the steps and handrails cracking as they, too, got swallowed by the destruction.

Lloyd swung the door open and, taking a brief last look across the remains of the Other World, slammed the door shut.

* * *

 **I DON'T WANT THIS TO END, OKAY? I HAVE HAD A LOT OF FUN WRITING THIS.**

 **Anyway, stay tuned! (And please leave reviews~)**


	18. Chapter 18

Lloyd leaned against the door as he tried to catch his breath. The house was eerily quiet, no more writing sounds coming from the Other Mother's study. A very slight vibration and creak shuddered under Lloyd, like a heartbeat. As he walked down the hall, he saw the wallpaper peeling up, showing rotting wood beneath. A green light oozed out from under the parlour room doors. The falcon poked his head out, looking up at him.

 _That's where I heard my parents._ His grip tightening on the strap of the bag, Lloyd headed for the doors, pushing them open.

A sickly green fire burned in the fireplace, eating away at the wood like acid. The bug furniture had gone grey, legs and wings twitching intermittently, the lights of their eyes flickering as if they were short-circuiting.

Goosebumps rose on his neck, and he turned around to see the Other Garmadon's form hunched over on the beetle sofa. His face was shrouded in darkness. "So…you're back." He turned his head to face Lloyd. His skin was still pitch-black, but the white marks on his face looked more like cracks in glass than veins. A second pair of arms had grown out of his spine, his fingers tipped with claws. His hair had grown wilder, longer, now as black as his skin was.

He wasn't an "Other Father", anymore, Lloyd realized. _He's what the ghost children called him. A Djinn, right?_

The Djinn's red button eyes focused on the falcon, his brow furrowing and nose wrinkling in disgust. "And you brought…vermin with you?"

Lloyd covered the falcon with his arm protectively, narrowing his eyes. "No… I-I brought a friend." Even so, he stepped back, feeling the falcon shudder under him.

The Djinn grinned wickedly, standing up. Lloyd saw that the entire lower half of his body had morphed into that of a snake's — but he somehow had four longer legs, making him look like a spider, as well — his clothes wrapped around his bone-thin body like a shell. He reached out two of his hands, his fingers now sewing needles, to cup Lloyd's face.

"You know I love you," he purred flatly, the tips of his claws just barely pricking his cheeks. He brought his hands away, tapping Lloyd's nose with a detestable grin.

He forced himself not to shudder at the contact. "You…have a very funny way of showing it."

Crossing both sets of his arms across his chest, the Djinn towered above him. "So, where are they? The ghost eyes?" He put his hands out in front of him expectantly, his lips curling back to show his teeth.

Without taking his eyes off what was once his Other Father, Lloyd took them out of his pocket, holding them out to the Djinn. His smirk grew wider, the corners of his lips nearly reaching his eyes. Before he could grab them, Lloyd pulled his hand back, feeling smug satisfaction as the Djinn hissed in frustration.

"Wait a sec," he said, glaring up at him. "We aren't finished yet, are we?"

With an enormous inhale through his nose, the Djinn smiled sweetly, withdrawing his own hands. "No, I suppose we aren't. After all, you still need to find your old parents…don't you?" He snickered, lifting up a needle finger to show the triangle candy, worn like a ring. "Too bad you won't have this." He whipped it into the fire, crouching to watch it melt away, the magic fizzling out of it with sparks and pops.

Lloyd felt one of the ghost eyes pulse in his hand, and he looked down to see the magenta glow of the sweet ghost girl — Nya. "Be clever, sir!" she whispered. "Even if you win, he'll never let you go!"

Nodding, Lloyd put the ghost eyes in his bag, and looked around for something to use as a distraction. His gaze fell on the beetle armoire in front of the little door, and his eyes widened. _I need to get him to unlock it._

Giving a small, brief grin, he turned to the Djinn, an idea forming as he spoke confidently. "I already know where you've hidden them."

Straightening up, the Djinn's mouth forced into a straight, skeptical line. "Well? Produce them, then."

Lloyd pointed at the armoire. "They're behind the door."

The Djinn smirked cruelly, leaning in. "Oh, they are, are they?" he hissed, lumbering over to the other side of the parlour. With a wave of his hand, the beetle armoire shuffled out of the way. Lloyd suddenly heard his father's finger against glass again, and he looked around, focusing his hearing as best as he could.

The falcon poked his head out of the bag, his head tilting as they heard the sound again. Then, his yellow eyes widened as they focused on the mantle. "There!"

He fluttered up to perch on the mantle, landing beside the bronze teapot. Lloyd looked up, and just barely saw a tiny hand wipe away the fog, his mother and father still huddled together as green crystals surrounded them.

Lloyd gave a shuddering gasp, his heart racing as he reached up to them, happy tears welling up. "Mom…Dad…"

A harsh cough sounded behind him. Lloyd spun around, wiping his eyes free of tears to see the Djinn coughing into his hand, the button-ended key landing in his palm. He turned his head to grin at Lloyd expectantly, giving him one last chance to change his answer.

Lloyd smiled. "Go on. Open it! They'll be there!"

The Djinn shook his head in mock disappointment, pushing the key into the lock, turning it. "You're wrong, Lloyd," he sang, opening the door with a loud creak. The tunnel was pitch black, and it almost looked like more spider webs had formed.

Lloyd looked from the door, to the teapot, then back to the door again, his thoughts rushing as he tried to formulate a plan. He noticed the falcon at the last minute, hidden in the mantle's shadows.

"Now…" the Djinn gloated, opening his hands to reveal a pair of black buttons, a spool of thread, and a needle, "you're going to stay here…forever." He grinned triumphantly, even as Lloyd backed up defensively.

Glaring viciously at the Djinn, Lloyd widened his stance. "No…I'm…" Then, he grabbed the falcon, hoisting him over his head. "NOT!"

With all his might, he threw the falcon, the bird sailing through the air as he screeched in surprise, landing on the Djinn's face. His wings flapped as the Djinn roared in shock, the falcon's talons gripping his button eyes in an attempt to find a landing. He staggered on his four legs, trying to dislodge the angered falcon.

As the Djinn was distracted, Lloyd grabbed the teapot, shoving it into his bag, and creeping along the opposite wall towards the little door.

The Djinn screamed in pain, and Lloyd turned in time to see two red buttons skitter to the floor, his hands covering his face. "NO!"

Flying off, the falcon screeched in fury again before disappearing into the tunnel. Shaking his head side to side like an agitated animal, the Djinn's hands pulled away to show two empty eye sockets, torn thread hanging from them.

"YOU CHEATING, GOOD-FOR-NOTHING BOY!"

He stomped his foot on the floor hard, and to Lloyd's surprise, the floorboards shredded away into a spiral, dragging him down with them. Under the floor was a wire web, the joints twanging and vibrating as he landed in the centre. The web stretched down like a cone some fifty feet below floor level, nothing but white nothingness surrounding Lloyd on all sides.

Panting, Lloyd clung to the wires and looked up as the Djinn cackled maniacally, leaping down into the web, his shredded clothing spread like wings behind him as he fell like a flying spider. Fighting back a shriek, Lloyd squeezed between the wires to the outside of the web, just as the Djinn landed where he was.

"NO! Where are you?! You selfish, disgusting BRAT!" he roared, whipping around and blindly grasping at the wires for his prey. In a panic, Lloyd climbed as quickly as he could, spotting the little door thirty feet above his head.

Once he got closer, Lloyd squeezed back through to the inside of the web, and was about to climb again when the bag got caught on the edge. Lloyd pulled it as hard as he could, until it finally broke free. Much to his dismay, it sent a vibration through the web, right down to where the Djinn was holding it.

Snickering, the Djinn climbed after him. Lloyd moved as quickly as he could, but could feel the Djinn gaining on him. Even as he reached the little door, he felt the Djinn's claws scrape against the sole of his shoe.

Lloyd scrambled through the door, grabbing the key from the lock. Then, the Djinn grabbed the door, thrusting his head through. "YOU DARE DISOBEY YOUR FATHER?!" he snarled.

Without hesitating, Lloyd kicked him square in the face, knocking him back and grabbing the door, pulling it closed. He had almost succeeded, only for the Djinn's needle fingers to appear through the crack, yanking it back open. The Djinn hissed a laugh, grinning at him through the opening.

Out of the corner of his eye, Lloyd saw three pairs of glowing, dismembered hands emerge from his bag. Recognizing them as the ghost children's hands, they grabbed Lloyd's hands that were gripping the handle. Lloyd felt his strength surge, and he gritted his teeth as he pulled harder.

"Come on…! Shut…!" The Djinn snatched desperately at him as the door was nearly closed, his pin-thin wrist reaching through the gap.

At last, the door shut, and the Djinn's hand snapped off, lifelessly lying on the floor of the tunnel as the Djinn screamed. His heart thumping in his chest, Lloyd quickly locked the door, sighing in relief.

Just then, the door was pounded from the other side. Lloyd scrambled back as green light flashed through the cracks of the door. Grabbing the key and bag, Lloyd ran through the tunnel as quickly as he could, the pounding growing more insistent, the flashing brighter.

"NO! DON'T LEAVE ME, **DON'T LEAVE ME**!"

The pounding grew faster, the tunnel growing shorter, and Lloyd could almost feel his legs about to give out from how cramped the space was. Nonetheless, he kept running, his eyes focused on the small door at the other end.

" **I'LL DIE WITHOUT YOU!** "

Lloyd threw himself against the other door, flinging himself into the real parlour room. He turned around to see the door getting closer and closer as the pounding grew as loud as it could, the tunnel shrinking like an accordion. Eyes widening, Lloyd slammed and locked the door, holding himself against it as he braced himself.

The door caught up with a crash, throwing Lloyd onto his back, the key flying out after him, bouncing off his forehead. The door and lock held fast, though. He was safe.

He groaned, shivering. _It's over_. He took in huge gulps of air, trying to calm his heartbeat. The room was filled with warm sunlight filtering , the sky outside blue and bright, fluffy white clouds drifting past. Lloyd smiled. _It's not raining out. Hasn't been like that since we—_

Gasping, he sat up, and opened the bag to free his parents from the teapot. As he searched, though, he couldn't find it. He swallowed hard, wondering if he'd somehow dropped it during his escape. Getting on his hands and knees, he searched the fireplace, hoping it had just tumbled out of his bag when he returned.

A sharp pain jabbed his palm, and he hissed, looking at it. A bronze shard was stuck in his skin. Raising an eyebrow, he stood and looked at the mantle, noticing the real teapot had its entire top shattered, the spout cracked along its length. Picking the bronze splinter out of his hand, Lloyd didn't even hear the door close as he pondered over how it could have broken.

Then, a familiar voice broke him from his thoughts. "Lloyd, we're home!"

Lloyd turned, his throat tightening in relief as his real parents stepped into the doorway, little green crystal shards sticking to their coats. "M-mom? Dad? You're back!" He ran up to them, grabbing them both in a tight hug, laughing in spite of himself. "I missed you so much!"

Garmadon chuckled. "Missed us?"

Lloyd pulled back to inspect their faces. "W-well, yeah! You were gone for so long!"

"Only for a few—" Garmadon looked past Lloyd, gasping. "Lloyd! You broke my favourite teapot! That was an antique!"

"No I didn't!" he protested. "It probably broke when you escaped!"

Looking Lloyd up and down, Garmadon folded his arms across his chest. "You cut your knee, too? I should've taken you with me. Clearly you've had too much excitement all alone here."

Misako held her folders to her chest, getting on her knees as she looked closely at Lloyd's injured knee. "Lloyd, what did I tell you? Count all the windows, don't put your knee through them!" She gazed up at Garmadon. "Thankfully he won't need stitches."

Confused, Lloyd pushed her hands away. "B-but don't you remember?"

Garmadon smiled. "Lloyd, it's fine. Just go upstairs and get cleaned up, okay?" He took Misako's hand as she stood up, his voice growing softer. "We're going out for dinner tonight."

Misako laughed, playfully elbowing Garmadon. "We have a lot to celebrate!"

Looking from the folders to their smiling faces, Lloyd suddenly realized what they were talking about. "You…mean the tea shop, don't you? We made all the payments and stuff?"

Garmadon raised an eyebrow. "Of course. What else would it be?"

As they turned to leave the room, Lloyd pressed on. "But what about those crystals on your…" The crystals dissolved as soon as he mentioned them. "…clothes?"

"Is everything okay, Lloyd?" Misako asked. Then she turned to Garmadon, walking off with him. "Perhaps we should get his head checked, too… To make sure he didn't hit it?"

Watching them leave, Lloyd's mouth hung open in disbelief. Shaking his head, he decided it didn't matter. Gazing over his shoulder again at the broken teapot, Lloyd smiled. _As long as they're back home, it's okay._

* * *

 **And so it ends...OR DOES IT?**

 **Leave a review, and stay tuned!**


	19. Chapter 19

Despite his protests, Lloyd's parents took him to a walk-in clinic to get him examined. Thankfully, he wasn't badly injured, and needed no stitches in his knee, much to Lloyd's relief; nothing would top his day off more than the threat of more needles. He did, however, take some spare string to turn the key into a necklace; it was safer with him than anywhere else.

They went out to a pizza parlour on the main street to celebrate the opening of the tea shop. Misako and Garmadon's final paycheques from their last jobs had finally come through, so there was no better way to spend them than with a family dinner. Lloyd had been mostly silent through the night, not knowing what to say to the people he was at first mad at, then relieved to see.

As he picked at the green peppers on his pizza, he bit his lip before he spoke. "Maybe…we should have a grand opening party tomorrow."

Garmadon raised an eyebrow. "Why do you say that?"

"Well…it'd be a good way to bring attention. We could offer tea samples, make pastries and stuff…"

Misako smiled. "It certainly wouldn't hurt to attract possible customers. Although we can't exactly give tea away to just anyone…"

"We could make invitations," Lloyd added. "Maybe…invite our neighbours as special guests? They can get the tea for free, and anyone else can get a discount."

Nodding, Garmadon took a sip of his water. "I like that idea much better. But I thought you didn't like our neighbours?" He raised his eyebrow inquisitively. "Had a change of heart?"

Lloyd shrugged, taking a small bite of his pizza. "I just think I should help with the store, too. You guys did most of the heavy lifting, so, y'know…" He didn't want to admit that he felt bad for treating them the way he did when they first arrived, but he knew his father would try to pry the real reason out of him at some point.

Nonetheless, Misako chuckled. "Then I suppose I'll stop by the printing office on the way home. Hopefully it won't be too short-notice for everyone."

She kept with her promise once they left, leaving Garmadon and Lloyd in the car to wait while she got the invitations ready. Though he knew his father wasn't angry with him anymore, Lloyd still felt the tension in the air between them. Taking a breath through his nose, he decided now was as good a time as any to apologize.

"Hey, Dad?"

Garmadon turned in his seat. Lloyd noticed with a relieved sigh that his neck had gained more mobility at last; soon he wouldn't need the neck brace at all. "Yes, son?"

Lloyd fidgeted a little. "I'm…sorry. I know that getting the tea shop ready was probably stressful for you and mom. It wasn't fair for me to get upset that you weren't showing me attention."

His father's eyebrows raised, and then he shook his head. "No, I should apologize, Lloyd. This move was stressful for you, too. Your mother and I should have tried to include you in our preparations as well, rather than leaving you."

"Except it's like you said! I'm fourteen now. I don't need your attention all the time anymore."

Garmadon chuckled. "Maybe. But that doesn't mean we should suddenly start leaving you alone." He reached out to hold Lloyd's hand. "Besides, now that the hardest part is over, we'll be able to spend more time together again."

Lloyd smiled, squeezing it in return. "Yeah. Just…don't go anywhere on me anytime soon, okay? Promise?"

"I promise, son."

~o~o~o~o~

Lloyd was able to make his bed once he got home, relieved to finally sleep under a normal blanket rather than in a thin sleeping bag. He laughed as Misako waved his stuffed puppy in front of his face, making little barking noises as she made their noses touch. "Mom! Cut it out!" He finally grabbed it from her, hugging it close. She kissed his forehead, smiling at him.

"I can't help it, sweetie," she said. "You've been so down, lately. It's nice to see you smile again."

Rolling his eyes, he sat up. "So, do you know what kind of tea we'll serve tomorrow?"

"I could probably just give out the green tea, the earl grey…"

Lloyd groaned, flopping back dramatically onto his pillow. "Come on! Why not any of the fancy teas? Like that dragon pearls one?"

" _Because_ they're fancy!" Misako laughed, tickling his stomach. He batted her hands away, giggling as he leaned up again.

"And you got enough invitations, right?"

Garmadon held a small stack of them, reading them over before he put them on top of Lloyd's raincoat lying on the chair. "You even want to invite Mr. Julien? Even though you said he's…" He twirled his finger at the side of his head.

Lloyd nodded. "Mr. Julien isn't a druggie, Dad. He's just…eccentric!"

"Sounds like someone I know," Misako said with a playful grin, kissing his nose. "Goodnight, Lloyd. Sleep well."

"Goodnight, Mom. 'Night, Dad." Lloyd rolled onto his side as Misako turned out the light, leaving the room. Then, he felt a hand move under his pillow, and looked up to see Garmadon smirk at him.

"It may not be the jacket you wanted," he murmured. "But I hope you'll like it." With that, he left the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.

Lloyd dug under his pillow, pulling out a small box. He took the lid off, and smiled as he saw a green and gold knitted scarf. He took it out, holding it up to let the gold stripes catch the moonlight.

A gentle thud sounded outside of his window, and Lloyd looked over to see a bird-shaped shadow outside. He hung his scarf on the chair, and got up to unlock and open the window. There, the falcon perched on his windowsill.

"Hey," greeted Lloyd, smiling awkwardly. "So, uh…you still mad about me throwing you? At the Other Father?"

The slitted yellow eyes told him everything he needed to know.

"Sorry… It was all I could think of." The falcon's angry expression softened, and Lloyd reached his hand out as an offering of peace. He rubbed his beak against Lloyd's hand, letting him pet his head gently.

Sighing in relief, Lloyd picked the falcon up, carrying him to his bed. He took his satchel off the chair, and pulled out the three ghost eyes. Turning them over in his hand, he looked up at the falcon.

"I think it's time…don't you?" Lloyd asked. "To set them free?"

The falcon nodded. Lloyd lifted his pillow and placed the ghost eyes under it, lying down and pulling the blanket up to his chin. The falcon settled himself beside his head, shutting its eyes. Soon enough, they both dozed off into a quiet sleep.

As he slept, the darkness brightened into a blend of colours, an oil painting swirling before Lloyd's eyes. He smiled, reaching out to touch the yellow spirals around him. Above his head, three golden eggs floated down, before their shells unravelled to reveal the three ghost children. No longer did they have button eyes or fear frozen into their faces, but rather real eyes, and the brightest smiles he'd ever seen. They had halos and feathery wings, free from the shackles of the Other Father.

"Thank you, sir," Nya said softly. Her clothes were whole again, her short hair neatly brushed. "It was a fine thing you did for us."

"I'm just glad it's finally over," Lloyd replied with a chuckle. "I don't know how much longer I could go running from the Other Father."

There was a moment of silence among them, the ghost children each exchanging a worried glance. The ghost boy, his green streak brighter than ever, then spoke. "It is over and done with…for us."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow, frowning. "And…what about me?"

The tall ghost girl, her face clear of scars and lacerations, fidgeted before she blurted out, "You're in terrible danger, sir!"

"B-But I can't be!" he protested. "I locked the door! He can't come back!"

"That's just it," Nya explained. "It's the key, sir. There's only one, and the Djinn will find it, no matter what."

The key around Lloyd's neck floated in front of him. He sighed, grabbing it before it floated away. "It's not fair… I did everything right, and I still can't win?"

The ghost boy led the others forward as they surrounded him in a gentle embrace. "It isn't all bad, sir. You're alive. You're still living. That's more than we can say." He pulled away to smile at Lloyd. "The three of us each made mistakes, and thanks to you, we can pass on. I think that's a victory." Along with the tall ghost girl, he floated away, leaving Nya to stay with Lloyd.

Lloyd turned to her, sighing. "I'm…sorry. That you and Kai got separated."

Nya giggled. "Don't worry. Now I can watch over him. But if you see him again, tell him I don't blame him for anything."

He frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

"He'll know."

As she floated away, Lloyd's oil painting world spun around him, and he shut his eyes as he spun faster, not wanting to make himself sick. Faster and faster he spun, feeling himself being pushed down through the floor gently…

Until he woke up, back in his bed. He quickly sat up, throwing his covers off. He jumped at the squirming under his blanket, laughing softly as the falcon wriggled out and glared at him. Shaking his head, Lloyd lifted his pillow, gasping at the sight of the ghost eyes, now broken into pieces like bird eggs.

He pulled the key out from under his pyjama shirt, holding it up to the falcon. "I-I need to hide this somewhere. Somewhere he can never find it. But…where…?" He gazed over at his window, towards the forest where the wishing well was.

Nodding to himself, he grabbed his smaller blanket and wrapped it around himself. As he got up, he heard the falcon's wings flutter, and stopped short as he blocked the door, looking up at Lloyd urgently.

Lloyd frowned. "Out of my way!" He pushed the falcon aside with his foot, opening the door and tiptoeing down the hall to the stairs.

He headed for the back door, pausing briefly as he heard a slight scratching sound. Shaking his head, he pushed the thought away as a simple tree branch scratching on the windows before he went out to the backyard.

He walked quickly and purposefully down the path, past the old pond, and up into the hills towards the forest. Dark, stringy clouds blocked out a full moon, its light just barely shimmering through the haze. Lloyd took a deep breath through his nose, humming the old song his mother sang the night before he found the Other World.

The cherry trees had blossomed pale pink around him, their petals gently falling along the path like snow. The rustle of small animals in the undergrowth and pebbles scattering down the cliffside added to Lloyd's personal soundtrack.

Soon, he came upon the well, the mushrooms still surrounding it like a gate. Lloyd looked over to the side, seeing the same tree branch Kai used to open the door the first day he'd arrived. He grabbed it, and pried open the well cover, this time shoving it aside completely.

There was more skittering sounding from behind him. Ignoring it, he wiped the sweat off his brow, then took the string around his neck, lifting the key up.

He had nearly gotten it lifted over his head, when suddenly something yanked the string hard, dragging Lloyd to the ground. He gave a choked scream, trying to pull his fingers out from where they were caught in the string. Struggling to look over at his captor, his stomach dropped when he recognized the needle fingers of the Djinn's severed hand, dragging him back down the way he came.

 _It's taking me back to the Other World,_ he realized with horror. Lloyd tried to pull back, but the hand was too strong, his fingers getting tangled in the string until they felt numb.

A loud cry rang through the cold air, and Lloyd looked up in time to see Kai, adorned in his oni mask and wielding his sword, leaping from the bushes. Like a golf club, he swung the plastic sword and knocked the hand away, making it bounce off the nearby tree stump.

Lloyd coughed and panted, sitting up and seeing Kai run at the hand, plucking it up with his salad tongs, hurrying towards the hole. The hand got free at the last minute, and sprang free of his grip, leaping onto his face. Screaming, Kai grabbed at it, only to trip over the rock near the hole.

Lloyd was frozen in fear as Kai was thrown into the well, his mask falling off and into the depths, only to catch the edge with one hand before he fell himself. He watched the hand scramble up Kai's body and onto the edge. It stabbed viciously at Kai's fingers one by one to make him let go.

"HELP!" Kai cried, struggling to hold on.

Still shaking, Lloyd rose to his feet, grabbing his blanket and leaping at the hand. Before it could drop Kai down the well, he wrapped the blanket around it, rolling over it and away from the well. Panting, he fought to keep it contained inside, only for it to tear viciously out of the blanket, crouching to attack him.

Then, just before it could leap at him, Kai dropped a rock onto it, breaking the hand apart into several tiny needles. He slouched over, panting heavily as he looked at Lloyd. Nodding, Lloyd pulled the key and string off from around his aching neck. He pulled the corners of his blanket together over the rock and needles, and tied it together with the string, the key still attached.

Together, Kai and Lloyd lifted the rock up, and carried it to the well. They exchanged a short, meaningful glance, before dropping it in, watching as it tumbled down into the waters deep underground. They only brought the cover of the well back over the hole once they heard a splash at the bottom.

Lloyd crouched at the edge, as Kai pulled off his glove, exposing his bleeding hand. He sighed, looking over at Lloyd.

"I'm sorry I didn't believe you about all this…evil stuff, Lloyd." He looked up at Kai, smiling at hearing his real name from one of the new neighbours, for once.

"What made you come back for me?"

Kai fished through his jacket pocket, pulling out a tiny photograph. "Grandpa Wu showed this to me when I told him about you. After I…called you insane."

Taking it from him, Lloyd held it up to get a better look. It was a picture of Nya, as young as her ghost self looked, holding a little button-eyed doll that looked just like her, down to her hair and clothes.

"It's Nya. My sister. Before she disappeared."

Lloyd smiled softly. "The sweet ghost girl. I met her."

Kai raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"She told me to tell you…that she doesn't blame you for anything. She said you'd know what she meant." He gave the photo back to Kai, who stared down at it, then smirked.

"Yeah…I do."

The cherry blossom petals fell around the pair like a first snowfall, and a voice called into the still night.

"Ashton! Come home! _Ashton_!"

Kai bit his lip. "Great… What am I gonna tell him now?"

Looking at the photo in Kai's hands, then back up to his face, Lloyd smiled. "Bring him down to our tea shop tomorrow. We can tell him together."

"We… We can?"

Nodding, Lloyd laughed, playfully punching him on the arm. "Looking back… I'm glad you decided to stalk me."

Kai gazed at him in surprise, before he, too, started to laugh. "Well, it wasn't like it was my idea!"

A familiar flutter of wings sounded in the cherry blossom trees above. The pair looked up to see the falcon, his yellow eyes glinting in the darkness. Soon, the moonlight around them grew brighter, as the clouds drew away from the moon like sheathing claws.

* * *

 **Obviously, the next chapter will be the last one. And it will be MUCH shorter than this chapter was.**

 **Stay tuned! And please review!**


	20. Chapter 20

Lloyd winced as he hit his head on the underside of the counter, steadying his grip on the tea tin in his hands. Shaking it off, he placed it on its proper shelf, grinning. All the teas were organized according to their type, from white tea, to black tea, to herbal tea, and even to dessert tea. It was finally beginning to look like a true tea shop.

From the kitchen in the back, Garmadon carried a tray of tea biscuits and lemon squares, arranging them in the pastry display at the side. "These should be enough for our guests today, don't you think, Lloyd?" he asked.

"I certainly hope so!" Misako answered with a laugh, placing the "grand opening" sign in the window. "We're already down to half a bag of flour." She peered out the window, watching for any customers. "Do you think our invitations were too short-notice? I can't see anyone yet."

"We just opened, Mom," assured Lloyd. "They'll be here before you know it." Even so, he couldn't help but wonder if they would come at all. After all, their neighbours were quite old.

Sure enough, Cole and Jay were the first to arrive, dressed in simple but stylish raincoats. Garmadon and Misako exchanged a short glance before smiling. Lloyd snorted, knowing they still thought the couple was quite odd.

"Welcome to Steeped Wisdom!" he greeted, going to the hot water dispenser. "What can I get for your free cup of tea?"

The men approached the counter, for once smiling at each other rather than glaring daggers. "I think I'd like your finest cup…of earl grey," said Jay, winking at Cole. Of course, with his one eye, Lloyd couldn't tell if it was a wink or a regular blink.

Cole chuckled. "In that case, I'll take peppermint."

As Lloyd began to steep the tea leaves, he decided to make the atmosphere more welcoming, what with his parents clearly unengaged. "So, Mr. Walker, how's your sewing coming along?"

"Nearly all five hundred sequins already," Jay replied with a smile. "But Cole here thinks it's missing some."

Cole rolled his eyes. "Your original outfit had way more. Your eye's messing up your memory."

"Oh? Are you sure you don't just need contacts?" Lloyd gulped, hoping they weren't about to argue right in front of his parents, but from the looks in their eyes, he could tell it was just playful banter.

He poured their tea, handing the cups to them. "Well? How's it taste?"

Jay gave it a small sip, and grinned. "It's pretty good. But I think you might've scalded the leaves a bit."

Cole elbowed him. "He's still learning! I think you did great for your first time F— I mean, Lloyd."

The bell above the door rang again, and Lloyd smiled as he watched Zane enter, nodding to Garmadon and Misako politely. "A pleasure to meet you two." He took Misako's hand, politely kissing the top of it.

Garmadon cleared his throat, shaking Zane's hand. "The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Julien."

Lloyd waved him over to the counter, smiling as he steeped Zane's request of green tea. "How are the snakes, Mr. Julien?"

Zane smiled. "They have told me that you're a saviour, Lloyd. And as soon as they are ready, they want you to be our first guest to their show." He tapped the side of his head. "Turns out, my flute-playing didn't do much. Drums, on the other hand, are much better for training them."

Laughing, he handed Zane his cup of tea, before he turned to his parents. "Mom? Dad? How about you?"

Garmadon raised an eyebrow. "What about us?"

"What kind of tea do you guys want?"

They exchanged a confused glance, and Misako laughed awkwardly. "Lloyd, it wouldn't reflect well on us if we took our own tea… Besides, we still have work to do!"

Lloyd shrugged. "I think you guys deserve a break, too. Come on, please? I wanna make something for you for once!"

After a brief silence, Garmadon chuckled. "You know I don't like tea." Then, he smiled warmly. "But I think that cherry blossom one sounded nice. I'd like that one."

"I'll have the white peach tea," Misako added. "That one has a nice scent to it, so it will probably taste good, too."

Nodding Lloyd got to work boiling the water and steeping the leaves, smiling to himself all the while. It felt nice to help out at the shop, now that his parents weren't in any rush to complete last minute preparations. Besides, it was something they could all do together. Even though Lloyd would be starting at his new school soon, he was pleased to spend more time with his parents, if only for a day.

As Lloyd handed his parents their cups of tea, the door opened again, and the old man's voice that Lloyd had always heard finally had a face.

"Ashton, you don't need to lead me everywhere!" the man — who Lloyd had come to know as Wu — chastised, being led by the arm by Kai. "I know my way around this town just fine!" The old man had a long, white beard, and wore a small black cap on his head, which seemed to be almost entirely bald.

Lloyd took a deep breath, and stepped out from behind the counter. "Mr. Wu?"

Wu looked up, his eyes crinkling as he smiled. "Oh, hello. You must be the boy Ashton has told me about. Lloyd, correct?"

"That's me." He led Kai and Wu to a table, pulling out a chair for the old man. "I'm glad you got our invitation. I wasn't sure if it was too short notice."

Kai smirked. "I had to beg him to come. When I told him there'd be tea, he was already out the door."

Wu scoffed, shaking his head. "I would have come anyway! I told your parents I wouldn't let you out of my sight!" He turned to Lloyd. "Speaking of which, do you by chance have a tea called dragon pearls? It's quite rare, and not many tea shops have it."

Beaming, Lloyd flashed an "I told you so" look over at his mother. "We sure do. I'll go make you a cup."

While his back was turned as he steeped the tea, he heard the door swing open, the poor bell ringing loudly and the door smacking against the doorstop on the wall. Two completely unfamiliar voices cried out the same name.

"Ashton!"

His brow furrowed, Lloyd looked over his shoulder and saw a man with spiky black hair and a thick moustache and goatee, and a woman with flowing brown hair rush over to Kai and Wu's table. Lloyd's eyes widened. _No way… They knew where he was?_

Kai sprang out of his chair. "Mom? Dad? What are you guys doing here?"

"We came back for you, obviously!" his father snapped. "Wu told us everything. Clearly you've been here for too long."

His mother nodded. "It's time to come home. Away from…" She hissed out the last part of the sentence. "…that place."

The timer beeped, and Lloyd poured Wu's tea. Gulping, he took the cup over to the table, placing it in front of Wu.

"Thank you, Lloyd," he said, loud enough for Kai's parents to hear. The couple turned their glares to him, which softened as they met his eyes.

Kai sighed in relief. "Mom, Dad…I'm sorry I left without telling you anything. But maybe he can tell you more." He grinned knowingly at Lloyd, giving a slight nod.

Smiling, Lloyd brought another chair over so they could sit at the table as well. "My name is Lloyd Garmadon. And I have so much to tell you."

As Lloyd explained his story, watching everyone's expressions and reactions to his adventure in the Other World, he could have sworn he saw the falcon peering in through the window, perched on a streetlight. Of course he would come to the tea shop opening; he was as much a part of Lloyd's company as the others there. Cole and Jay with their performer backgrounds, Zane and his ambitions of creating a snake circus, his parents, and of course Kai, the one who got his curiosity going in the first place. Why shouldn't the falcon be included?

The falcon soon disappeared behind the streetlight, and wasn't seen again.

* * *

 **Well...I guess that's that. It's all over now.**

 **I want to thank everyone who's stuck with me for this long, and especially to all the new readers I've picked up. I started writing this story when I was finally at a happy point in my life, and although I've had tons of ups and downs during this period, I can happily say I've created something I am undoubtedly proud of.**

 **Thank you everyone who has reviewed and commented on this story! Please leave your final thoughts, and I hope you're excited for the next story I have planned...**

 **Because that will be Ronin's backstory.**

 **Stay tuned, and thanks for reading!**


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